We are delighted to announce that Joe Edwards has joined us as a regular columnist and feature writer at Greyhound Weekly. Joe is Communications Manager at Monmore Green and a former sports journalist with the Express & Star. Here’s a short introduction from the man himself.
Upon arriving at Monmore Green, I had a lot to learn about the world of greyhound racing and those who dedicate their lives to the sport.
Just over a year has since passed, and it truly has been a pleasure to get to know so many trainers and owners, and most importantly, the amazing dogs who are not only such supreme athletes but also such kind-hearted souls who make us all smile.
Making the step to become Communications Manager at Monmore was a case of entering the unknown having previously worked as a sports journalist at regional newspaper, the Express & Star for eight years – where I had been ever since leaving full-time education as a teenager.
My role there mainly saw me cover football matches up and down the country, writing about the trials and tribulations of Wolverhampton Wanderers, Walsall and our other clubs here in the West Midlands, meeting some colourful characters along the way and even managing to annoy a certain Premier League manager enough that he stormed out of the press conference. That was the enigmatic Nuno Espirito Santo for you!
Thankfully, I’m yet to get under the skin of anyone here at Monmore – or at least I don’t think so – and while something of a departure from my time at the Star, I’d make the switch again 10 times over. You could very much say I’ve caught the greyhound bug.
Part of my work now allows me to scratch the old itch as I do a weekly write-up on happenings at Monmore for the Express & Star, interviewing trainers and owners about their star performers. And I’m privileged that the opportunity to become a columnist for Greyhound Weekly has now come up, allowing for even more of a spotlight to be placed on what’s going on at Monmore.
We have made a big effort to promote ourselves over the past year both within the sport and to those who are looking for more of a casual night out in Wolverhampton, and hopefully you will have noticed a difference in our social media output in that time.
Taking the plunge and starting a TikTok account has proved a fruitful venture, with our videos gaining more than 30,000 views over the last two months. Our Greyhound of the Day posts have also gained a fair amount of traction across all platforms, while we have recently introduced a Retired Greyhound of the Day feature in the aim of raising awareness of our rehoming partners and, fingers crossed, helping some more hounds find loving forever homes.
Attendances on our Thursday and Saturday race nights have been steady throughout 2023 so far, but we’re always striving for more and hopefully there will be lots of well-attended meetings over the Christmas period given we have had a healthy number of bookings already. Britain’s Got Talent finalist Amy Lou is performing at the stadium on December 1st, too, as we look to make the most of our facilities away from race nights and raise the venue’s profile a little more. I’m delighted to say that’s now almost a sell-out.
There’ll be plenty of features with the people who make the racing happen here at Monmore and coverage of our major Opens in the coming months. If you have any topics you’d like to see covered or particular people highlighted, please shout up!
Again, it’s a pleasure to be on board, and until next time, I’m heading to the paddock to take some photos of the greyhounds and give them a fuss.