Wentworth Park is a sporting facility with multiple purposes, situated in the suburb of Glebe, 2km outside of the Sydney central business district, in New South Wales, Australia. It is a multi-purpose facility that hosts a rugby union as well as rugby league, soccer, speedway, and greyhound racing.
Originally, Wentworth Park was a rugby league park, and it hosted the Glebe Dirty Reds. The park has since expanded to include the other sporting disciplines.
History of Wentworth Park
Even before Wentworth Park was a sporting facility, the area was in heavy commercial use. In the 1830s it became known as Blackwattle Cove Swamp, and from that time up till the 1860s, various businesses established themselves along the shores of the creek and swamp. These included abattoirs and boiling down works. These industries polluted the swamp so severely that all the businesses were removed and, later, the area had to be filled in to remove the smell continually arising from the muddy area.
The filling-in of the creek and swamp began in 1876 and continued up until 1880. In the early 1880s, the area was re-established as a public park with greens, paths, ovals, and lakes. The area was renamed as Wentworth Park, after the politician of the same name. During the 1880s and 1890s, the park continued to be used for community activities, including concerts, motion pictures, and sports, eventually focusing only on the latter of those in the 1900s.
Greyhound Racing at the Park
Even though Wentworth Park boasts a significant number of sporting activities, greyhound racing has been part of the park since the 1980s, when the Greyhound Owners Breeds and Trainers Association (GBOTA) first made it their home.
Greyhound racing is hosted at Wentworth Park on Friday and Saturday evenings after 7:30pm, as well as on various public holidays. There are two race distances available, one 520 metre race and one 720 metre race. Originally, the greyhound race track at Wentworth Park had a grass surface, but it was converted to its current loam surface in the 1990s.
Some of The Races
Wentworth Park is the home of numerous significant races, but the biggest event of the year is the Group 1 Golden Easter Egg. It is held over the Easter period, with the final held every year on Easter Saturday. The Group 1 Golden Easter Egg race offers an average of one million Australian dollars as prizemoney and the race attracts an average of 25 000 visitors.
Betting on Greyhound Races
As all popular sports games, greyhound races are also popular attractions for sports bettors. While greyhound racing is not a betting sport in every nation, it is an enormously popular one in Australia, often likened to horse racing betting sites, albeit of a much smaller scale.
Given the enormous events held at Wentworth Park, such as the Group 1 Golden Easter Egg race, this is a poplular attraction for sports bettors.
Sports bettors will usually find ample opportunity for betting at greyhound races. It is an activity encouraged by the sporting facilities, which offer bookies and betting arenas, and is generally quick and easy to do.