By TERRY WILSON

LAST year’s winning trainer Anthony Azzopardi is confident he will have a couple of genuine contenders for back-to-back wins in the Healesville Cup (350m).
The finals of the annual straight-track classic in Victoria is scheduled for Sunday, September 6, with heats the previous Sunday, August 30.
And Azzopardi is set to launch a stern challenge to match last year when his runner Myrniong And All took the major share of prizemoney for the formerly Group 2 classic.
This year first money is $47,000 although this time it is back to G3 status with hopes of Healesville officials to regain the G2 ranking the race previously held.
Myrniong And All has since been retired but leading trainer Azzopardi  has faith in at least three of his chasers to bring home the bacon.
He has set Bill Bath (My Bro Fabio-Gut Wrenching), Short Pork (Sulzanti-Porky Teller) and Slick Riot (Brett Lee-Ready To Riot), a half-brother to Whiskey Riot, for the event.
“I will definitely be back again this year,” said Azzopardi.
“My dogs can run and they will all break 19 seconds this year, for sure,” he said.
“It takes a good dog to win a Healesville Cup. They have to be reasonably strong and if it’s a fair race only the best dogs can win it.”
Last year Myrniong And All clocked 19.01s in the final.
Healesville General Manager Cynthia O’Brien expects some quality greyhounds being nominated, as is usually the case with enough nominations for eight heats.
“We always get good dogs, always had top quality fields,” she said.
Among recent Cup winners, chasers with super ability, have been Zinzan Brooke (2017) and Zipping Arnold (2016).
The first winner of the Cup up the straight track at Healesville in 1990 was Eureka Man, which could gallop.
(Photo: BlueStream Pictures)