Marchant living the Derby dream as One Slick Jamie exceeds expectations

One Slick Jamie exceeding Marchant’s expectations

Despite being the outsider at 225/1 to win the Derby, Paul Marchant’s One Slick Jamie will look to upset those odds by qualifying for the semi-finals of the StarSports/TRC Greyhound Derby on Saturday.

Paul Marchant entered two Greyhounds into the StarSports/TRC Greyhound Derby this year, Soul Choice and One Slick Jamie and it’s probably fair to say that he is having an enjoyable experience with the pair of them. Despite Soul Choice being knocked out in the second round when finding plenty of trouble, he managed to win in the first round, and although One Slick Jamie is yet to win in this year’s Derby, he lines up in the quarter-final’s on Saturday having exceeded his trainers expectations.

“If you look at his form in Ireland, he’s basically an A2 grader, though he did win one A1 contest, so you could say he’s definitely exceeded my expectations.

“When I look to buy dogs, I tend to go for the ones who I think could suit certain tracks, and in the hope that I can bring them forward. I bought Soul Choice who won in the first round before getting knocked out in the second round as well as One Slick Jamie. Both were bought with the Derby in mind, but more as a dream rather than reality.

“I knew both would run Towcester well as I run my dogs at Hove and buy dogs that will suit there and if you run Hove well enough, you will run Towcester. It’s a nice place to be in really, we’ve made it to the quarter-final’s and there bigger name trainers who haven’t got a runner left in the competition and that’s a nice feeling.

“That’s the thing with greyhound racing. There aren’t many sports where you can compete at the highest level having spent a relatively small amount of money. Both of my runners cost less than £3,000 each yet I’m in the quarter-final of the Derby, and at a time where we are looking to bring more people into the sport, it just shows you don’t always need to spend lots of money and that you can achieve success in the sport for a smaller outlay. If the sport can promote it that the average person can compete at the highest level for very little money, I think that it’s a good sell for the sport.

“It’s a good story isn’t it, a bit like Leicester City winning the Premier League and it will probably never happen again, but Salad Dodger winning the Derby is another example and even Seamus Cahill winning with Astute Missile where the unexpected can happen”

Marchant is semi-retired having run a successful air conditioning business and spends the winter months in Australia having used to live out there years ago, and buys a couple of dogs when he gets back to the UK for the summer months, but he spoke about an accident on the way to the track in the first round which almost saw him not even make the track

“I was on the way to the track and I got hit up the back on the M25 by an old couple and I didn’t think I was going to make the first round. I managed to persuade the police officer and managed to chop off a few things that were hanging down, but they said you can go one way, either home or to Towcester, so I chose to go to Towcester. The impact actually broke his cage and I hadn’t realised at the time. I was on the phone to Towcester to let them know what had happened and if it would be ok for kennelling when I got there, and it was then I noticed that his cage had broken. But we made it to the track and the vet checked him over when we got there and he was fine to race, and ended up running well to qualify”

Marchant though isn’t too optimistic about making the semi-final’s next Saturday

“I’m a bit concerned with Faypoint Harvey, who has good early pace but can come across into the trap 2 position, so hopefully, he traps well again, and we will be a length or so behind him. We should have the space, and we might need the outside three boxes to know one another quite quickly.

“I did think we could qualify last week, I really did as there was no real pace and with Rackethall Brute coming out, it just helped the situation. I felt we could lead the inside three, but I really can’t see it this week I’m afraid.

“It’s been a complete surprise to me how well he has been staying on though and six bends could be an option for him at some point in the future."

Marchant also explains about not going down the route of buying expensive greyhounds and how he enjoys looking for an improving type

“For me, the fun part is finding a dog that turns out to be a gem. If I wanted to spend bigger money on a dog I could, but would I want to? No, because it takes the joy out of it. The pressure then is on you having to win something. I like to look for a type where you can improve them. For me it’s the impossible dream. I’m not someone who considers themselves as a greyhound trainer. I’ve been doing it for a lot of years, but I don’t consider myself a greyhound trainer. 

"It’s something I do as it gives me something to focus on and I love the dogs, but after that it’s can we win the Derby, and realistically, it’s ridiculous to think that we can as spent less than three grand on the dogs, but that’s the dream. To win a Maiden at Hove and to enter the Derby is just the dream.

“In the second round, we overtook Teejays Chelms to qualify, which cost over £25,000, and he cost slightly more than a tenth of the price, but he’s trained by Paul Young, who I would call a proper greyhound trainer and it’s just part of the dream to beat trainers and greyhounds like that.”