Greyhound officials to meet as trackside behaviour goes to dogs | Manawatu-Wanganui News | Local News in Manawatu-Wanganui

He said stipes (stipendiary stewards) were “very disappointed” by the behaviour of a minority of people, who seemed reluctant to listen to reason.

He agreed it was not a good look for an industry which had already taken a hit with falling stakemoney in troubled economic times.

“It’s certainly not something the public should have to put up with,” he said.

John McArthur, Wanganui’s board representative, said he did not want to comment, but was aware of the problems.

“I only know what I’ve been told by people who were there,” he said.

In 25 years of greyhound racing in Wanganui, he said altercations between owners and trainers were never as serious as they are at present.

He said the trouble had to be “cleaned up fast”.

In the midst of the brewing bad feeling and trouble is owner and trainer Stephen McInerney who spoke to the Chronicle yesterday from a Greyhound track meeting in Auckland.

He said that his handler Jake Woolston-Bell had been given some aggro at the Manawatu track on Monday and when Mr McInerney’s pregnant partner Stacey Nissen went over to help she copped it as well, he said.

He described the men involved as heavies who had nothing to with racing.  

“It’s not on she was really frightened. They had threatened to break Bell’s kneecaps.  Then they turned on [Stacey] and she’s nearly five months pregnant. We’re not here to fight with other owners and trainers, we’re here to race, that’s all.”

 After Wednesday’s meeting at Wanganui’s Hatrick raceway, Mr McInerney and Mr Bell struck more trouble but this time it came from an owner and had nothing to do with Monday’s incident, he said.

“We’re from the south, from Christchurch, right. We used to come up here to race on a Friday night and it was never a problem. But after we moved up here about five months ago there’s been all this fighting.