Crossley is going to the dogs!

ATHLETIC goalkeeper Mark Crossley is quick out of the traps when it comes to his knowledge of greyhound racing.

There was a time when the 39-year-old, who is a successful owner, would think nothing of travelling all over the country to watch his dogs race - and team-mates thought he was barking mad.

Crossley said: “If one of my dogs was running at Wimbledon on a Tuesday night, I would make an eight-hour round trip from Middlesbrough.

“The race would only last about 29 seconds and the lads thought I was mad, but I would make a social night of it.”

The Latics stopper had a share in six dogs and even ventured into breeding them. But he has scaled down his involvement and only has one at the moment, a half share in Droopy’s Obafemi.

Crossley has enjoyed success in the sport, with two of his dogs reaching the semi-finals of The Derby which is the sport’s most famous competition.

Back in 2001 Frisbee Forte, which he owned with Chris and Dougie Freedman, the Crystal Palace and former Scotland footballer, came through six rounds to reach the semi-final.

The second Derby semi-final appearance came last year with Droopy’s Obafemi - named after Newcastle’s Nigerian striker Obafemi Martins - in which Crossley has a half share with a Newcastle fan and friend and which cost them £16,000 to buy.

“I have won as much as £12,000 prize money in one race, though I never went into the sport to make money,” said Crossley: “It was an interest and any winnings went into a pot towards buying the next dog.”

Crossley has also been involved with other members of the footballing family as he previously encouraged Craig Bellamy, Jimmy Bullard and Lee Clark to invest in shares of dogs he owned.

“Lee Bowyer, Francis Jeffers, Niall Quinn and Kevin Phillips also had dogs. Often there would be a number of players and wives who would go to watch them run and it would be a good night out.”

Crossley’s interest in greyhounds began 12 years ago in his days at Nottingham Forest when he lived a bone’s throw away from the city’s greyhound track.

He said: “I was single at the time and there was racing on Monday, Thursday and Saturday evenings and if I was bored I would go along to watch.

“I began talking to people and was asked to become more involved and, as I didn’t have many commitments at the time, decided to take the plunge when a friend, Dave Willans, and I bought our first dog, a bitch called Sam Fay Lady which only cost £250.

“She was absolutely useless, but simply owning a greyhound got me hooked. The winner in me wanted more so we paid £2,000 for our next dog, No Matter How which had far more success.”

After his move to Middlesbrough, Crossley was introduced to Durham-based trainer Ted Soppitt and started buying from a group in Ireland called the Droopys, who are regarded as the top breeders.

He said: “The top dogs running in England are usually Droopys and they tend to be named after famous people or sportsmen.”

Crossley estimates he has had share in about a dozen dogs since his Forest days, the most successful being Ted’s Joe which had 13 wins from 15 races.

He may not be as involved these days, but Crossley is still an avid fan of greyhound racing.

And when Athletic have a night out at the dogs next month at Belle Vue - they have taken 100 bookings - Crossley will be on hand as the expert pundit offering tips aimed at finding winners.