Draw No Christmas Gift For Embye

RUTH Matic concedes a wide draw will make it difficult, if not impossible, for Embye to upset star brothers Good Odds Harada and Feral Franky in Saturday night's four-greyhound Group 3 Christmas Gift Final (520m) at Wentworth Park.

While Embye's forte is staying and middle distance events, he ran a sensational 41.88s at his 720m debut in April, he clocked a sensational 29.40s at Wentworth Park on October 26, which earned him a berth in the $25,000 to-the-winner Gift.

The first two positions in the Gift went to the greyhounds that recorded the two fastest 520m times at Wentworth Park between September 1 and December 15, with Good Odds Harada's 29.34s in the Million Dollar Chase the benchmark.

Adding further merit to Embye's qualifying time, it was his first run in three months after suffering a cracked hock in July.

However, Embye, a son of Group 1-winning sprinter Keybow, failed to fire at his next two starts, finishing unplaced at Nowra and Dapto, which left Canyonleigh-based Ruth Matic searching for answers.

"After he ran the 29.40s first-up I thought he might have been a little bit flat, so I gave him nine days off," Matic explained.

"I gave him another run and he didn't go that well and I thought he might have picked up a virus. I got a blood test done and he had kidney stress.

"So I gave him another four weeks off and got him retested and he still wasn't quite right but he was on the way to getting there.

"The original plan was to take him down to Sale for the Cup over 650m but we didn't have time to get him back up to 600m because of the kidney problem.

"Adam Dobbin, from The Recorder, called me about being in the Christmas Gift and I decided to trial him at Bulli last Saturday to see where he was at.

"If he hadn't trialled well I wouldn't have run him in the Gift but he ran 26.17s on a very ordinary track, so I thought he deserves his place, he's run the time and he can go around."

The draw for the half-field feature wasn't kind to Embye, which is the $14 outsider from box seven, with Goods Odds Harada, last start winner of the Group 1 Dapto Megastar, the $1.40 favourite from the rails alley.

Good Odds Harada's Group 1-winning litter brother Feral Franky is the $3.50 second elect from box five, with Jimmy Casey a $10 chance from three.

"Off the inside he might've done something but I don't know what he'll do off the outside," Matic said.

"He's won 15 races and 12 of his wins have come from boxes one to four and only three have been from five to eight, which tells the story.

"The four-dog format will suit him but he's up against three of the best dogs in NSW. I'm happy to be in the race and hopefully he can stay in touch and go alright but the main aim is to build him back up to 600m and 700m."

Saturday's meeting will feature another four-greyhound event for the stayers, also worth $25,000 to-the-winner, the Group 3 Christmas Cheer Final (720m).

Dual Group 1 winner Blue Moon Rising (box 7) is TAB's $1.95 favourite, ahead of Just Terms (box 5) at $2.25.

Just Terms and Blue Moon Rising ran the quinella in the Group 3 Newcastle Cup (715m) at The Gardens last Friday, with Just Terms prevailing by three-quarters of a length.