The Healesville Greyhound Racing Association was the centrepiece of outstanding greyhound racing and generous fundraising for the inaugural running of the Sportsbet The Emerald event, over 300m on Sunday March 12.
The Jason Thompson-trained Unleash Collinda sprinted to victory in the $50,000 feature event, securing $30,000 of the prize and winning his 21st race from 31 starts, and 13th win from 14 attempts down the straight track at Healesville.
The Emerald is a new race that includes heats and a final, with the final field decided by times run in the heats, so the fastest dogs throughout the heats earned their spot in the final.
A large crowd, including a fun, colourful and loud group of 80 young racegoers from The Emerald Hotel in South Melbourne, descended on the picturesque track in the heart of the Yarra Valley to enjoy straight greyhound racing at its best, but it was the Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal that was the beneficiary of the on-course spending by racegoers.
The club has been a long-time supporter of the Good Friday Appeal and General Manager Cynthia O’Brien said it was a very rewarding day for the club on several fronts.
“We love supporting the Appeal every year and this year has been no different, the contribution and generous support of those on course for The Emerald were significant towards our overall tally, but we fundraise throughout the year for the Appeal, and to this point in time we have raised approximately $13,000 and will keep on doing it right up until Good Friday on April 7,” she said.
“We’ve been fortunate to be given the opportunity to race on Good Friday since its inception in 2022 and we have a fantastic day at the track raising as much as we can for a cause that’s very close to our hearts.”
The tally was given a substantial boost when the curtain fell on The Emerald meeting when a $10,000 contribution from Sportsbet was announced. Throughout the afternoon, on-course patrons had the chance to win $1,000 if the dog carrying the blue rug saluted, thanks to Sportsbet, and if it didn’t, the $1,000 jackpotted – and without a winner for the final 10 races of the day, the $10,000 jackpot was donated by GRV’s wagering sponsor to the Good Friday Appeal.
The major fundraising activities on the day resulted in Mrs Heather Collins of Pearcedale winning the $3,000 travel voucher from Yarra Valley Travel, another proud supporter of the club.
Healesville race every Friday and Sunday morning, including Good Friday on April 7.
