JENNI MARCH bridged a gap of over 25 years when winning the 72nd 2-Year-Old Produce Stakes at Swindon on Saturday with Zenas Zeus leading home Shoot The Bolt for a famous one-two for Dorset breeder Paul Attwater.

Making all the running over the 480m trip, the October 2016 son of Tullymurry Act and Westmead Lola led home his litter brother by three lengths, clocking 28.90sec for the fastest time in the four-round British Bred showpiece.

“He’s a dog who improves for a look at the track, and just seemed to get better throughout,” said March, who modestly described the Chris Sliney-owned Zenas Zeus as a greyhound who does not need much training!

“He really doesn’t,” she said. “It all comes naturally to him. It was the same in his schooling. He went around Terry O’Sullivan’s schooling track once – a handslip I think – and the penny dropped very quickly.

“He’s just learned the game with each race. He moved through the grades at Central Park and improved with each run, and it’s been the same at Swindon. He started better in the final and just stayed on even better to win.”

March first took out a trainer’s licence in the 1960s and remains one of the longest serving trainers in the sport. Memories of greyhounds such as Pixie Pickpocket, Special Gamble, Black Armour and Ultimate Gamble were stirred after Saturday.

Pixie Pickpocket was a marathon star of March’s who, such was her popularity at the time, even made the main cartoon feature in one of the London evening papers – a clipping the trainer still has in her possession.

“She was a cracking bitch and won the Lupa Memorial at Clapton – at 16-1,” added March. “It’s a race we’ll always remember because Carol was on a bridge they had next to the multi-storey car park above the track looking down over it.

“She must have been 14 or 15 at the time and was holding a clutch of tote tickets and must have thrown them in the air in her excitement. It wasn’t until after the presentation when we went to collect some winnings then realised what she’d done!

“Thankfully we did find them, slightly crumpled I might add, so that’s a great memory as was when Pixie won the Stayers Plaque at Wimbledon over 1,000 yards. Black Armour winning the Sussex Cup at Hove for us also stands out.”

Ultimate Gamble won the then Western 2-Year-Old Produce Stakes at Bristol’s Eastville Stadium in 1992 for March, so victory in the £15,000 showpiece at the Blunsdon venue at the weekend might have created some sort of record.

“It’s certainly a rather long gap to win an event for the second time, but we’ll take it!” said winning trainer March. “My daughter Carol has promised me we’ll have to now win it again in 2044. I’m not sure about that!

“Carol (Arnold, daughter) always thought the world of him. He just had a natural action, and it was nice to win the competition given Clive LeFevre remains a great friend and drove us on Saturday – he bred Ultimate Gamble. We’ve gone full circle!

“The presentation on Saturday was a noisy affair – we certainly made ourselves known! Because the brothers were one-two, we had Paul’s (Attwater) connections with us, and both Zenas Zeus and Shoot The Bolt drunk out of the trophy!”

Plans for Zenas Zeus are fluid now, given conditions for the Romford Puppy Cup have changed. “That’s disappointing they’ve moved it, because it would have been perfect for him. He’ll not stay Nottingham for the Breeders Stakes there.”

For his part, winning breeder and the runner-up’s trainer, Paul Attwater said: “With my breeder’s hat on it was a fantastic night, couldn’t have gone any better. I’m pleased for connections of both dogs – they’re lovely people who know how to celebrate success!

“With my trainer’s hat on, I’d have love to have won it for my brother (Neil) and family but will settle for finishing second to his litter-brother and all congratulations to winning trainer Jenni March and owner Chris Sliney. They’re lovely people.

“Finally, we learned tonight that ‘Deefa’ (Shoot The Bolt) will stay with us for a crack at the Puppy Classic during August at Nottingham over 500m. That should suit so distance- and track-wise, so we’re pleased all round.”