From its inception in 1990, the Golden Easter Egg has been the event greyhound trainers covet. Since Jim Coleman's Ultra Sense won the inaugural Egg and its $80,000 first prize, it has been the race participants want to win.
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After 33 thrilling chapters, the chase continues Saturday night, April 13, with eight greyhounds, their trainers and owners all wanting to write their name on the prestigious honour roll. While there may be races in the sport worth more than the $350,000 prize that this year's Ladbrokes Golden Easter Egg offers, sometimes it's not only about the money.
"I grew up in the industry, and my parents would always talk about the Easter Egg," trainer Darryl Thomas said. "It's prestigious. Look, anyone who says the money doesn't mean a lot is lying. Money obviously means a lot, but the prestige around the Egg - it's been around for a long time, and a lot of the good dogs aim for it and win it. It would be great to win one."
Thomas finished second in a Million Dollar Chase in 2020 with Xerri, while South Coast trainer Stephen Fitch was also a runner-up in the Million Dollar Chase last year with Cumbria Kid. He, too, has no doubt the significance of the Easter Egg. "I remember the first Egg ever when I was 16 years old in Dubbo," he said. "I remember watching Jessica Casey winning the second one, too, because our friends owned her. The Egg's the biggest race in NSW, if not the country. The Million Dollar Chase is awesome, but I will take an Egg."
This article was produced as part of an ACM partnership with Greyhound Racing NSW.
