Major double for Monmore trainer Richie

All the latest action from Monmore dogs.

Monmore trainer Richie Taberner is on cloud nine after two claiming two major trophies in the space of a few weeks.

Trainer Richie Taberner, owner Keith Moores and his granddaughter Adeline with Adelinesfirstdog, while Emily Safe and Tony Drew are with their other Steel City Cup finalists Holding Blaze and Moanteen Hatton | Monmore

placeholder image — Trainer Richie Taberner, owner Keith Moores and his granddaughter Adeline with Adelinesfirstdog, while Emily Safe and Tony Drew are with their other Steel City Cup finalists Holding Blaze and Moanteen Hatton | Monmore

Adelinesfirstdog, trained by Wombourne-based Taberner and owned by Keith Moores, stormed to victory in the £12,500 Steel City Cup final at Sheffield last Sunday.

It follows on from Countess Penny, handled by Taberner and owned by the Not So Famous Five, claiming the prestigious Produce Stakes title at Towcester on September 20.

Taberner now has three Category One triumphs to his name, having also won the Pall Mall at Oxford with Aero Sacundai back in 2024, with this stunning recent run putting him tenth in the Open trainers’ standings.

A top-six finish would mean a spot in next year’s Trainers’ Judgement Night/David Lipsey Trophy, and his position could improve even further tonight with Holding Hollie running in the Oaks final at Dunstall Park and Aero Molly in the Puppy Derby semi-finals at Doncaster.

Taberner and connections with Countess Penny after winning the Produce Stakes at Towcester last month | Monmore

“It was a cracking run from Adelinesfirstdog. We had Moanteen Hatton finish second in the race while Holding Blaze was also in the final for us, so it was a fantastic weekend,” said Taberner. “For that to follow on from Penny winning at Towcester a few weeks ago, it’s just been an unbelievable few weeks and testament to the work of the team here at Aero Greyhounds. I couldn’t do it without them.

“Adelinesfirstdog was named by Keith for his granddaughter, Adeline. He owned greyhounds a long time ago and recently got back into the game, and then his first dog back has managed to win a Category One for him!

“He’s a big dog who has taken a bit of time to grow in confidence and realise his potential, so we’re going to give him a bit of a break and then target some of the bigger competitions again in the new year.

“We’ve got a really good team of greyhounds at the moment, perhaps the biggest pool of real talent in my time as a trainer, and me and my partner at Aero Greyhounds, Stuart Forsdike would just like to thank our owners for backing us and trusting us to get the best out of these great athletes.”

Meanwhile, also flying the flag for Monmore and competing in a big final at Dunstall Park this evening is the Kim Billingham-Hine trained Newinn Souly who goes for glory in the £10,000 Scurry Cup showpiece.