IRISH blood stock breeders hit the jackpot in 1996 when their major auction sale outlets, Goffs at Kill and Tattersalls at Fairyhouse and Newmarket, between them managed a 40 per cent hike in turnover as compared with 1995.
The Tattersalls aggregate went up by £34 million from £86 million to £120 million, while Goffs, a hoist from £24 million to £33 million. The associated racing industry in this country produced no such bonanza as preliminary figures for the year released last night by the Irish Horseracing Authority makes only too plain.
Year on year, the figures read well but in this instance one is not comparing like with like. The final quarter of 1995 had been damaged by twin factors.
Weather for one played havoc with the Leopardstown Christmas Festival, blotting out all but one session, while earlier in the autumn Leopardstown had to cope with a multi fixture bookmakers strike, the first such stoppage in the country in a 100 years.
Thus the 8.6 per cent increase in the Computote turnover up to £19,529,794 compares with a 1995 decline of more than 7 per cent and a far truer picture is to be obtained through a comparison with the preceding year. On that basis the Totalisator is up by less than one per cent over the last three years.
This is not a surprise to those that have followed the fortunes of the Tote since it started on its computerising programme in 1987.
Then it was predicted that it would produce a 30 per cent increase in real terms. In fact it has not managed 30 per cent in any terms. It is a matter of record that in the intervening decade, despite a more modern looking image and a substantial increase in betting opportunities, it has failed to match a low rate of inflation.
A prime cause for this has been the increase in deductions from, pools which ensured that in 1996, it returned a record low 79 per cent to punters on monies taken in. Ninety was the level achieved even during the second World, War years and for long after. Low deductions on win and place pools are essential if it is to compete, with the bookmakers.
Betting with the bookmakers was much more buoyant with an increase of more than 10.5 per cent on the home meetings on 1996 and even more importantly a similar improvement over 1995 with the aggregate attaining a £74 million level.
Stake money was up from £13.1 million to £13.9 million, the extra money coming entirely from sponsors and owners in almost equal shares.
Perhaps the most healthy increase of all came in the field of attendance where one can compare like with like and this showed that the average attendance at race meetings in the South rose by 220 from 4,393 to 4,613 and this makes spectacular reading when compared with the paid attendance at our far larger and richer neighbour.
