Buckland breathes new life into Yoda I Am

By Isaac Murphy

Scott Buckland and his star pupil Yoda I Am have both faced and overcome more than their fair share of adversity.

The trainer and his dog are having the time of their lives since a critical operation turned it all around for the dog that Buckland picked up as a giveaway, now two from two since getting his clean bill of health and the trainer thinks he’s only scratching the surface with plenty of untapped potential.

“We got him as a giveaway after his first two starts, he always trialled the house down but come race day wasn’t performing anywhere near that standard, we knew something was off but couldn’t figure out what,” Buckland said.

“Everything before the race he looked a million bucks but during the race he was falling away badly in his runs and it was taking him two or three days to properly recover after a race.

“Eventually we found out his tonsils were swelling up during his races to the point where you could maybe fit a ten cent coin down his throat; a lot of trainers said it was 50/50 whether the dog would come back better with his tonsils out but he wasn’t racing well anyway so it was a no brainer and he’s been bouncing around like a pup ever since.”

Yoda I Am has got a second chance at racing life and has shown dramatic improvement in back-to-back Capalaba wins.

“Since we’ve had the tonsils out he’s gone two for two up the straight at Capalaba and improved his personal best by almost half a second,” Buckland said.

“I can’t wait to get him back to Albion Park, I’ve never had a Thursday night winner and I really think he can be the dog to do it - it’d be really special seeing he was a giveaway.

“Eight starts ago before he got the operation he got a ticket at Albion for fighting, he’s had eight starts since then with no problems, so the plan is to have two more up the straight at Capalaba, get him to ten starts where his ticket is rescinded and get him to Albion.

“He’s run some serious times there and in his steward’s trial went 29.9 which I couldn’t believe, so hopefully he’ll be well graded there in a couple of weeks.”

The partnership between trainer and dog was meant to be, with an amazing set of circumstances leading to Buckland acquiring the dog.

“My wife Liane and I went out for dinner for her birthday earlier this year and being Star Wars fans, we noticed Yoda I Am on one of the TAB screens,” Buckland said.

“We were sitting there waiting to be seated and decided to watch the race and he didn’t start well at all but made up about ten lengths in the run home and I thought to myself with a bit more time he could be alright.

“I didn’t think anything of it and the next morning I jumped on Greyhound Data and the first dog up for giveaway was Yoda I Am, so I rung the bloke straight away who said he’d only put the ad up two minutes ago and I said I’ll take him.

“I didn’t need to do the research because I’d watched him the night before.”

The dog needed an attitude adjustment when Buckland first picked him up, however his transformation has given the trainer plenty of joy after a tough start to his training career.

“He came to us in good order and was race fit but the way he carried himself, head slumped he never looked happy, so I made sure I spent plenty of time with him and slowly he’s come around,” Buckland said.

“I was in a car accident in 2009 which meant I couldn’t work full-time anymore, so that’s when I got into greyhound training to give me a passion - I didn’t want to sit around and do nothing.

“The upside is the time I get to spend with my animals, if I’m not racing or trialling, I’m at home with the dogs and he just hangs around me all day.”

Fast forward nine months and Buckland says he sometimes thinks he’s got another dog, such is Yoda I Am’s new lease on life.

“He’s a completely different animal now, walks around with his head up high, jumps around biting your shoes, it’s like getting a pup with a blank canvas - we don’t know how good he could turn out to be,” he said.

“We didn’t realise how badly it was affecting him until you see the difference in the dog now, I’m just so thankful we went that route.

“At two-and-a-half he’s got a new lease on life; we won’t push him, he hasn’t done a lot of racing, but it certainly gets you excited thinking how far he might go now he’s 100%.”

A former athlete, Buckland’s accident cut one career short, but he may not have ever found his new passion.

“I owe a lot to greyhound racing, the accident took a lot of things away from me; I used to play competitive beach volleyball which I no longer could do and have really needed dogs in my life to keep my spirits up,” he said.

“My brother, myself and a mate originally got involved as owners buying a dog who didn’t live up to his billing and the trainer sacked him, so that’s what led me to getting my license.

“I was involved with Mike Stephenson and he was my mentor right through that period, anything I needed advice on he was there and I have to mention Paul Bateman and Sidney Goodwin too.

“I read Bart Cummings’ book and it said to take a little from other trainers and put your own stamp on it, so that’s what I tried to do.”