Sharp Elated With Winning Sandgroper ‘Solution'

THERE was no shortage of feel-good stories stemming from the inaugural TABtouch Western Trilogy series staged amid much fanfare over the weekend.

Grabbing most of the headlines was the heroics of Overpass in The Quokka which landed the $2 million winner's purse for the hugely passionate Ram Racing Syndicate.

But at Cannington on Friday night there was an equally engrossing backstory to the win by Crumble Monelli in the $500,000 The Sandgroper which was representing slot holder Total Container Solutions.

Steering the ship for the slot was group 1 winning owner Jarrod Sharp who returned home to Victoria on Monday following what could be best described as prolonged celebrations.

"Just a fantastic week and a wonderful event to be a part of," Sharp said.

"To win obviously takes it to another level and to share in the celebrations with so many good people and friends. But mostly thank you to Dave Hobby and the dog Crumble Monelli.

"And Linda Britton, her hospitality was amazing; it just felt like days of endless celebrations."

When word first broke of the Western Trilogy series being brought to life in WA, it was premier trainer Robert Britton who stoked the fire with Sharp to pursue a slot.

"I had a chat with Shane O'Hehir (from Total Container Solutions) who loves his racing and it went from there. In the end we combined our slot with Linda Britton and her slot (with Electrified) so everyone had two bites at the cherry.

"And it worked out great because it brought everyone together for a fantastic week and some great celebrations. And it just shows with these big slot races you don't have to be a big corporate to enjoy success."

Following the all-the-way win by Crumble Monelli in The Sandgroper it was a contingent of the RAM Racing Syndicate, which finished third with Elite Machine, that were first to congratulate Sharp and his fellow winning slot holders.

CRUMBLE MONELLI takes out The Sandgroper for trainer David Hobby and slot holder Total Container Solutions. pic.twitter.com/xH3MPLIiyG

— Greyhounds WA (@greyhounds_wa) April 14, 2023

"I was at the races at Ascot on the Saturday and made sure I returned the congratulations after Overpass won for them which was a wonderful result," Sharp said.

"They are a fantastic group of people and great for racing – we need more of it. I'm pretty sure they've said they might be interested in a slot in The Phoenix which would be great for that race as well."

And they won't be alone with their The Phoenix aspirations.

"We've discussed pooling The Sandgroper winnings and rolling it into a Phoenix slot as well, we'll see," Sharp said.

"As good as The Sandgroper was, I think the money needs to be worked on moving forward. Unless you win the race there's no real way of getting a return on your $44,000 slot investment."  

Crumble Monelli's place in The Sandgroper was only determined relatively late in proceedings, following failed attempts to land a dog from the eastern seaboard.

Jarrod Sharp joined @PeterON68 after a big win from Crumble Monelli in the Sandgroper!@TAB_touch @TABradio pic.twitter.com/nngyTjyL7p

— The Dogs WA (@TheDogsWA) April 14, 2023

"Two we talked to were connections of Magic Muffin and Rejuvenate because we really wanted an on pace dog," Sharp said.

"After that we tossed a few names around on a group chat and when I threw up Crumble Monelli it was Brendan Pursell that said it was a no brainer so we moved to lock it in.

"It's funny how things work out sometimes. Robert Britton kept telling me not to rush but you can't wait forever!"

And as for the celebrations.

"I won't be having a beer for a while – let's just leave it at that!"