The Night Sir Denis Was Suspended Poem by Francis Duggan

The night Sir Denis was suspended for fighting
For greyhound racing it was a setback
We never saw him race again in Ireland
Or cheered him on to victory at Cork track.

For his owner Ben Riordan from Cullen disappointment
As well as for his trainer Timmy Duggan of Millstreet
It was a night they won't care to remember
Their top class dog scrubbed from the racing sheet.

A fawn dog bred in Millstreet Town by Andy Duggan
By Tanyard Heather out of his brood bitch Roxanne
A dog who might have won the Irish Derby
But everything in life doesn't go to plan.

The night that the Cork stewards suspended Sir Denis
At the Cork track one could hear a pin fall
The stunned racegoers were silent for a moment
A memory that I often now recall.

The stewards at Cork track did not have an option
The rules state a dog who fights whilst racing must be barred
But that the dog in question drew the big crowds to racing
For stewards to have to ban him must be hard.

One of the fastest greyhounds in Duhallow
And banned from racing as he reached his prime
And memories of the fawn speedster from Millstreet
Still live despite the passages of time.