| 1991 Respond Irish Greyhound Derby | |
| Date End: | 14 September |
| Prize Money: | £30,000 (winner) |
| Venue: | Shelbourne Park |
| Location: | Dublin |
| Prev: | 1990 |
| Next: | 1992 |
The 1991 Irish Greyhound Derby took place during August and September with the final being held at Shelbourne Park in Dublin on 14 September 1991.[1]
The winner Ardfert Mick (named after Ardfert local Mike Mulrennan) won £30,000 and was trained by Matt O'Donnell, owned by Noel Clifford and bred by Maurice Harty. The race was sponsored by the Kerry Group's dog food product 'Respond'.[2]
At Shelbourne, 14 September (over 550 yards):
| width=30 | Position | width=180 | Winner | width=300 | Breeding | width=30 | Trap | width=50 | SP | width=80 | Time | width=200 | Trainer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Ardfert Mick | Ardfert Sean – Boher Rita | 1 | 11-4 | 30.19 | Matt O'Donnell | |||||||
| 2nd | Ask Clare | Ardfert Sean – Boher Rita | 4 | 7-1 | 30.35 | Jerome Keane | |||||||
| 3rd | Super Gem | Summerhill Gem – Black Survivor | 2 | 25-1 | 30.61 | Joe Kenny | |||||||
| 4th | Lyons Monks | The Other Risk – Mountkeeffe Lady | 5 | 20-1 | 30.62 | John Coleman | |||||||
| 5th | Lodge Prince – Chini Chin Chin | 6 | 6-4f | 30.77 | Matt O'Donnell | ||||||||
| 6th | Coalbrook Tiger | Skelligs Tiger – Summer Flower | 3 | 7-2 | 00.00 | Padraig Campion |
2, 3¼, short-head, 1¾, dnf (lengths)
| Heat 1 (Sep 3) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=20 | Pos | width=150 | Name | width=40 | SP | width=40 | Time |
| 1st | Matthews Gold | 7-4f | 30.45 | ||||
| 2nd | Meet Me Halfway | 5-1 | 30.53 | ||||
| 3rd | Brandy Fitz | 14-1 | 30.71 | ||||
| 4th | Deenside Dasher | 66-1 | 30.91 | ||||
| 5th | Haremania | 5-1 | 30.93 | ||||
| 6th | Dempseys Whisper | 5-2 | 30.95 | ||||
| Heat 2 (Sep 3) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=20 | Pos | width=150 | Name | width=40 | SP | width=40 | Time |
| 1st | Coalbrook Tiger | 8-11f | 30.29 | ||||
| 2nd | Orlando Jack | 14-1 | 30.85 | ||||
| 3rd | Parquet Pet | 2-1 | 31.01 | ||||
| 4th | Derrymore Moon | 7-1 | 31.21 | ||||
| 5th | South Salonica | 12-1 | 31.23 | ||||
| 6th | All Jitters | 14-1 | 31.51 | ||||
| Heat 3 (Sep 3) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=20 | Pos | width=150 | Name | width=40 | SP | width=40 | Time |
| 1st | Terrydrum Tico | 4-7f | 30.40 | ||||
| 2nd | Summerhill Super | 2-1 | 30.68 | ||||
| 3rd | Colwin | 12-1 | 30.80 | ||||
| 4th | Avoid The Clash | 12-1 | 30.84 | ||||
| 5th | Yale Heights | 8-1 | 31.08 | ||||
| N/R | Itsallovernow | ||||||
| Heat 4 (Sep 3) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=20 | Pos | width=150 | Name | width=40 | SP | width=40 | Time |
| 1st | Ask Clare | 3-1 | 30.46 | ||||
| 2nd | Salisbury | 6-1 | 30.66 | ||||
| 3rd | Slippys Quest | 7-1 | 30.90 | ||||
| 4th | Me Know Nothing | 6-1 | 31.14 | ||||
| 5th | Millers Imp | 7-4f | 31.17 | ||||
| 6th | Katies Gold | 8-1 | 31.29 | ||||
| Heat 5 (Sep 3) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=20 | Pos | width=150 | Name | width=40 | SP | width=40 | Time |
| 1st | Early Potter | 6-1 | 30.45 | ||||
| 2nd | Super Gem | 5-2 | 30.51 | ||||
| 3rd | Ballyoughter Lad | 2-5f | 30.54 | ||||
| 4th | Hazel Quest | 6-1 | 31.18 | ||||
| N/R | The Other Night | ||||||
| N/R | Frozen Problem | ||||||
| Heat 6 (Sep 3) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=20 | Pos | width=150 | Name | width=40 | SP | width=40 | Time |
| 1st | 3-1 | 30.38 | |||||
| 2nd | Lyons Monks | 8-1 | 30.74 | ||||
| 3rd | Ardfert Mick | 5-4f | 30.78 | ||||
| 4th | Odell Valley | 16-1 | 30.84 | ||||
| 5th | Village Support | 3-1 | 30.90 | ||||
| 6th | Forever N Ever | 25-1 | 31.02 | ||||
| First Semi Final (Sep 7) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=30 | Pos | width=130 | Name of Greyhound | width=50 | SP | width=50 | Time | width=80 | Trainer |
| 1st | Farloe Melody | 5-2f | 30.25 | O'Donnell | |||||
| 2nd | Ardfert Mick | 11-4 | 30.61 | O'Donnell | |||||
| 3rd | Parquet Pet | 10-1 | 30.81 | Hitch | |||||
| 4th | Matthews Gold | 3-1 | 30.87 | Kinane | |||||
| 5th | Ballyoughter Lad | 8-1 | 31.07 | McKenna | |||||
| 6th | Salisbury | 50-1 | 31.10 | Hitch | |||||
| Second Semi Final (Sep 7) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=30 | Pos | width=130 | Name of Greyhound | width=50 | SP | width=50 | Time | width=80 | Trainer |
| 1st | Super Gem | 14-1 | 30.51 | Kenny | |||||
| 2nd | Coalbrook Tiger | 7-4jf | 30.55 | Campion | |||||
| 3rd | Early Potter | 10-1 | 30.71 | Bolton | |||||
| 4th | Terrydrum Tico | 7-4jf | 30.91 | Lennon | |||||
| 5th | Meet Me Halfway | 7-1 | 30.94 | ||||||
| 6th | Orlando Jack | 11-1 | 31.06 | Hayes | |||||
| Third Semi Final (Sep 7) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=30 | Pos | width=130 | Name of Greyhound | width=50 | SP | width=50 | Time | width=80 | Trainer |
| 1st | Ask Clare | 2-1 | 30.26 | Keane | |||||
| 2nd | Lyons Monks | 8-1 | 30.64 | Coleman | |||||
| 3rd | Colwin | 16-1 | 30.88 | O'Connor | |||||
| 4th | Brandy Fitz | 12-1 | 31.24 | ||||||
| 5th | Slippys Quest | 8-1 | 31.28 | McEllistrim | |||||
| 6th | Summerhill Super | 11-8f | 31.52 | Enright | |||||
Matt O'Donnell entered eleven runners in an attempt to successfully defend the Respond Irish Derby title. All twelve safely negotiated the qualifying round. Among them was Farloe Melody and Ardfert Mick the winner of the Cox Cup at Newbridge Greyhound Stadium and Febo Champion Stakes, he had posted a new track record in the Cox Cup recording 28.68.[3]
The fastest qualifier was Tipperary Cup champion Coalbrook Tiger in 30.13, followed by the John Coleman trained £10,000 Tennents Extra champion Satharn Lady in 30.17.[4] Terrydrum Tico, Ardfert Mick and Coalbrook Tiger all successfully won their second round heats but Satharn Lady suffered a serious injury.
The quarter finals winners were Coalbrook Tiger (30.29), Farloe Melody (30.38), Terrydrum Tico (30.40), Mathews Gold (30.45), Early Potter (30.45) and Ask Clare (30.46). The first semi-final saw Farloe Melody defeat kennelmate Ardfert Mick before Super Gem provided a shock with a success over Coalbrook Tiger. Ask Clare beat the main English challenger Lyons Monk in the final heat.
Both Coalbrook Tiger and Farloe Melody made a hash of the start when the traps lifted, leaving Ask Clare in the lead pursued by his brother Ardfert Mick. Ardfert Mick took a first bend lead and drew clear. Coalbrook Tiger was knocked over and broke a hock. The win gave Matt O'Donnell two titles in a row and it was the first time that two full litter greyhounds had taken the first two places.