`Rebel County' toast Waterloo success.

Byline: Michael Fortune

WHILE Henrietta's victory was being toasted in the Southport area yesterday afternoon, the drinks were already flowing all around County Cork for this was very much a success for the `Rebel County'.

The bitch is owned jointly by long-time friends Liam Burke and Mossie Barry, two great coursing followers. Burke, associated with the Whites Cross club, is a former member of the Dail (Irish Parliament) and for years was to the forefront in the battle to keep coursing alive. Since his retirement from public office, Burke has become even more involved in greyhounds and is currently a director of Curraheen Park.

Henrietta's success marks a change in Burke's luck as he was desperately unlucky in both the Derby and Irish Cup in recent weeks with the flying dog called Cool Blues.

Mossie Barry is involved with the Northerns open club and has been involved in many coursing dogs with Burke. But Barry's greyhound involvement goes even further as his daughter Sandra is the tote manager at Curraheen Park.

Henrietta is an April 01 daughter of the 1999 Waterloo Cup winner Judicial Inquiry and Lady Whitley (Form Of Tender - Cloncurry Ivy) and was bred by the WMB Syndicate headed by Jimmy Walshe.

And it was Walshe who trained the bitch to yesterday's great victory. This would be by far the biggest success ever for Walshe who is responsible for the Idaho prefix. Walshe has a strong connection with the sport's hierarchy as his wife Deirdre is a sister of Irish Coursing Club chief executive Jerry Desmond.