Wee Coyote Sees Frazer Return A Winner

GROUP 1 winning Hawkesbury trainer Garry Frazer swapped the reins and bridle for a collar and lead to guide home promising greyhound Wee Coyote to a debut victory at Richmond on Wednesday afternoon.

Frazer, who trained his grand mare Spright to group 1 glory in the Robert Sangster Stakes at Morphettville in May, stepped out with his first greyhound for over two years on Wednesday, with Wee Coyote, a strikingly bred son of Fabregas and Big Chicken, ensuring his return was a successful one.

"There's a bit of Wee Coyote, he's upwards of 37 kilos, he's almost as big as some of the horses I have here," Frazer joked following Wee Coyote's slick 22.99 victory in the Ladbrokes Maiden Stakes (400m).

Frazer, who has three kennels inside his Clarendon-based stables, took up training greyhounds way back in the late 1960s, buying his first greyhound off the late great Kellyville breeder and trainer Bob Doak.

"I've had greyhounds for decades but you'll see me drop in and out of training every few years waiting for the pups to come through," Frazer said.

"I bought Wee Coyote when he was six months old off Hank Vanderburg who reared him for me. There's big raps on a few in the litter and my bloke is no slouch either. 400 yards isn't his go at all, you'll see the best of him when he stretches out to 500 yards on the bigger tracks. He showed plenty of ticker to get up and win after getting knocked around on Wednesday – it's really good to see early on."

Wee Coyote's eye-catching first up Richmond victory on Wednesday was Frazer's first foray back into greyhound racing as a trainer since May 2017, while it was his first winner since 2015.

"I got my greyhound trainers' licence back in 2012 and have trained a few on and off since … I was diagnosed with diabetes back then and the doctor told me I needed plenty of exercise," Frazer said.

"At the time I gave it a bit of thought and I wasn't keen to go walking on my own so I decided to buy a couple of greyhounds and exercise them the old fashioned way."

While Wee Coyote looks set for a promising future, Frazer also has some other regally bred greyhounds on the way through.

"I've got two well-bred Fernando Bale x Good Odds Angel pups that are six months old and I am in the ownership of a dog called Winking Nick that Frank Hurst is training … he ran 18.62 in a Richmond performance trial last month."

And while Frazer was in the winners' circle at the greyhounds on Wednesday, the veteran trainer admits things are a little slow on the thoroughbred front at present.

"Spright's been served by Zoustyle – you reckon it'd be worth a few bob," Frazer added.

"I've got a few injuries at the moment and some young ones I'm working through so things are a bit slow.

"Sharapova was showing promise but she pulled a ligament in a knee and is out for a few months. I've got a good opinion of a younger sister to Spright called Disengage – it's just a waiting game for now."