THE statistics show that former champion stayer Texas Gold takes 47.2 pups to get just one city winner.

Those figures are not good. Compare it to Trewly Special who takes just 6.3 pups to get a city winner. Brett Lee is 6.8, Token Prince 8.2, Bombastic Shiraz 8.6.

This is surprising considering his own sire Flying Penske takes just 6.2 pups to get a city winner - currently the best in the land.

I suppose it can be explained to a degree by the fact Texas Gold, as a stayer, may have been shunned by those with the top class broodbitches. Those old phobias are hard to budge, specially among the greyhound fraternity.

There are ways to mate every stud dog to help him succeed and Texas Gold is no different.

In the week just gone, Texas Gold was represented by yet another Group winner when Gold Heritage (Texas Gold-Hot Heritage by Placard) landed the time-honoured Cranbourne Cup as favourite and against a hot field.

I find Gold Heritage's pedigree quite fascinating.

The most dominant ancestor within Texas Gold's pedigree when it comes to his success at stud is his damsire New Tears and obviously he comes via a daughter in Sheza Swifty. Ideally Texas Gold should be mated with bitches that bring in a SON of New Tears somewhere within their pedigree.

Gold Heritage has New Tears' SON Light Of Fire in his tail female line.

This is an important factor in the pedigree of Gold Heritage.

Hot Heritage, dam of the Cranbourne Cup winner, was a maiden winner. Her dam Wildfire Shelley was a Sandown and multiple Cannington winner. Next dam Web Of Fire was a multiple Sandown and Meadows winner. This is the damline of Go Wild Teddy and more recently Where's Pedro and Hallucinate.

Hot Heritage has an interesting pedigree in that she is line bred to that most famous of Australian greyhound racing nicks that between Shining Chariot and his full sister Centrefire (Chariot Supreme-Shining Light). Being from the Malawi's Prince sireline means Hot Heritage also carries a cross of Bowetzel, half brother to Shining Light.

Texas Gold was a pretty good choice of sire for Hot Heritage.

Texas Gold's immediate damline traces directly to Chariot's Desire (his third dam) and she is yet another sister to both Shining Chariot and Centrefire. The first pair is littermates, whelped in 1984, while Centrefire was a 1987 whelping.

So what we see within the pedigree of Gold Heritage is a duplication and sex balance to New Tears the most dominant ancestor within Texas Gold's pedigree.

Then we have a link between two full sisters and a full brother. Chariot's Desire and Centrefire are certainly positioned to impact the mating. It is significant that Chariot's Desire comes via a daughter, and Centrefire comes via a son.

Wild Season, damsire of Hot Heritage, is line bred four times to champion broodbitch Secretly, twice via Academy Lass, once through Bonnie Secret and significantly once via her SON William Todd. Secretly is also the third dam of champion Pretty Short sire of New Tears the importantly duplicated ancestor within Gold Heritage's pedigree.

This is the same damline as Malawi's Prince grandsire of Hot Heritage.

Head Honcho, sire of Wild Season, is line bred 2x3 to Promises Free and her brother Nation Parade.

Gembrook, second dam of Hot Heritage's sire Placard, is line bred 2x2 to Promises Free and Nation Parade.

So Hot Heritage was not only line bred to Shining Chariot and his sister Centrefire, but she was line bred 3x3 to Gembrook and Head Honcho who are both bred on the same cross to a litter brother and sister.

Flying Penske, sire of Texas Gold, is line bred four times to famous Australian Tell You Why who just happens to be a member of the damline that also boasts Temlee.

Sheza Swifty, dam of Texas Gold, has four crosses of Temlee in her pedigree, Hot Heritage has 17.