Ross Miller hoping that syndicate for youngsters can provide the sport with some unity

Fruity syndicate for youngsters fills in two hours

The Dean Blackbird kennel has a new inmate with 25 owners who will generate more noise when their new bitch runs than most. That is because they are all youngsters who are part of a drive by Ross Miller in a bid to generate interest in the sport of greyhound racing from the next generation. All 25 shares were given away for free under guardianship of their parents who will be the 'official' owners, although the greyhound will belong to the kids.

"The idea originally came from when a dog that Kaitlin Petch and myself used to own (Romeo To Victory) who was winning lots of opens at Sheffield" Miller told us. "The track would do a meet the stars after the dogs ran and the idea came from seeing all of the happy faces. Recently the kids at Sunderland did a sponsored walk with the rehoming dogs. We need the younger generation to keep the sport going.

"In Ireland you see the kids parading the dogs but we’ve had to do it under the parent guardianship. The 25 shares went to people from all over the country and it took less than two hours for them all to be taken! 

"A lot of people do syndicates but it seems to be focused more on people with money so I spoke to Dean Blackbird and said let’s do this, I’ll purchase the dog and I’ll give 25 shares away under the guardianship of their parents. 

"I’m going to do it again, I’m going to try and do it more and more, they all want to come and see the dog run. I send them regular updates of the dog like when she’s going to be marked up which will be next week. We’ve started a WhatsApp group with all of the parents on and they sent all of the pictures of the kids with their share certificates.

"The next one will be at Newcastle as Dean is dual attached and the one after that will be an open racer and will be going to Tom Heilbron. It’s the pure enjoyment that the kids will get watching the dogs run, it won’t matter what grade or what her price."

"We bought her after two trials, she improved nicely in the second, she’s an improving type, she’s blue and white. We’ll start her off in sprints at Sunderland before stepping her up to four bends."

We wish Ross, Dean and all involved in Fruity Unity all the best in their campaign to bring the sport to a new generation. You can follow along with their story on their X profile or on TikTok.