NEWINN LIZ and Queen Jessiej set up a mouthwatering clash in Sunday’s final as the pair clocked identical times in winning their semi-finals of the Property192 Oaks at the Blunsdon venue last weekend.

First to go was Ernie Gaskin’s runner who maintained her unbeaten record in the bitches’ Classic when pacing up alongside fast-starting Ballymac Trend before pulling clear of Angie Kibble’s local youngster at the halfway stage to win by just two lengths in 28.26sec.

That time was matched by Queen Jessiej some half an hour later as Liz McNair’s Produce Stakes champion kept up her own fine record over C&D as she trapped in front and raced away to win impressively from Fantastical (John Mullins) by almost six lengths.

The third semi-final went to the Frank Bryce-trained Baggios Gem as the two-year-old was well away and soon bossed proceedings inside before holding Produce Stakes finalist Lights Out (Kevin Hutton) by half a length in 28.64sec for the 476m trip.

Commenting on the semi-finals and the weather conditions the track has faced during the competition, Swindon’s social media manager and photographer Josh Sealey said: “We’ve had all sorts thrown at us during this competition and Sunday was no different.

“We had heavy rainfall throughout the day, but the track held up really well and the wet conditions didn’t dampen spirits at all here – and again we witnessed some brilliant performances in three fantastic semi-finals.

“Obviously Newinn Liz and Queen Jessiej were the two bitches everybody was keeping a close eye on and for them both to post exactly the same time certainly makes for an even more exciting final when you add in the other four finalists.

“I decided last minute that the trap draw should be live streamed and we hopefully managed to do it justice on short notice,” added Sealey. “I’ve a few other things planned before the final with additional content so hopefully it all goes to plan.

“It should be a great weekend of racing for greyhound fans, with not only the Oaks final on Sunday but also the TV Trophy/Olympic finals at Hove on Saturday – RPGTV viewers are in for a treat. I certainly can’t wait to see what happens in all these finals, but especially here at Swindon of course.”

Colin Davey, sponsor of the Property192 Oaks, congratulated connections of the finalists and confirmed that, on top of the £15,000 first prize, £5,000 would be paid to the winning trainer and £1,000 to each kennel represented for its staff.

“It’s right to reward those at the sharp end of the sport looking after our fantastic greyhounds, so I’m delighted to give the kennelstaff of each finalist £1,000 – and I suppose it’s great then that six kennels are represented on Sunday.

“I’ve been very impressed with all the bitches and, forced to pick one on Sunday, I’d say Newinn Liz has the best of the draw.

“However all six have achieved something special in reaching an Oaks final – these are the broods of the future hoping to produce the champions we’ll then be cheering on for years to come. It’s right that a great and historic race such as the Oaks is supported.”

*Trap draw for Sunday’s £15,000 Property192 Oaks Final: 1 Lights Out, 2 Queen Jessiej, 3 Ballymac Trend, 4 Baggios Gem, 5 Fantastical (w), 6 Newinn Liz (w).