The BOYLE Sports Lifford Oaks returns for 2026 at Lifford Greyhound Stadium, with €15,000 to the winner from a total prize fund of €25,700 and 24 bitches battling it out over three rounds. BOYLE Sports have signed a three-year deal to back the race through to 2028.
The reigning champion is Magical Mag, who made all the way to land the 2025 renewal for trainer Patrick Guilfoyle. Sent off the 7/4 favourite, the Irish Derby finalist held off Kimcat and Tumble Bumble in 29.08 to collect the €10,000 first prize in the first Lifford Oaks run since 2009.
Barry Clancy 's Droopys Crispy heads the market at 5/2, ahead of Graham Holland 's Cork Oaks winner Bombay Special at 7/2.
Derby runner Unassuming and Magical Fiona follow at 8/1. Patrick Guilfoyle's Galway Oaks heroine Magical Be Nifty, and Clancy's second-string Rolo Eugenie round out the leading contenders.
Outright Odds
BOYLE Sports Lifford Oaks Odds
Greyhound | Odds | Chance |
|---|---|---|
Droopys Crispy | 5/2 | 28.6% |
Bombay Special | 7/2 | 22.2% |
Unassuming | 8/1 | 11.1% |
Magical Fiona | 8/1 | 11.1% |
Magical Be Nifty | 14/1 | 6.7% |
Rolo Eugenie | 16/1 | 5.9% |
Bar | 16/1 | 5.9% |
Oaks Favourites
BOYLE Sports Lifford Oaks Favourites
Droopys Crispy
Droopys Crispy – 5/2
Heading the market for the 2026 BOYLE Sports Lifford Oaks is Droopys Crispy, whose odds of 5/2 represent a 28.6% chance of landing the €15,000 prize for trainer Barry Clancy.
Droopys Crispy first made her name at Newbridge in March, landing the Brownstown Tango and NTSC Open Unraced Bitch 525 in 28.94. She has gone from strength to strength since, going unbeaten through all four rounds of the Paddy Merriman Memorial at Shelbourne Park. She clocked the fastest time of the second round, set the standard again in the semi-finals and sealed the final on Saturday 3rd October.
She now bids for another major title of her career. She is drawn in trap one in heat two of the opening round, and her likeliest danger there, the impressive Shelbourne unraced winner Mystical Nala, has been ruled out after coming into season.
Bombay Special
Bombay Special – 7/2
Next in the betting is Bombay Special at 7/2, a 22.2% chance of victory for trainer Graham Holland, who saddled a record sixth BOYLE Sports Irish Greyhound Derby winner with Bockos Gold last month.
Owned by Jack Ryan, the daughter of Dromana Bucko and Tory Aria announced herself with a hat-trick of wins in the Munster Christmas Cup at Clonmel last December. She then landed the Cork Oaks final in March in 28.42, using her early pace to hold off Magical On Fire by half a length.
Bombay Special went on to win heats in the Irish Derby, including an opening-night upset of her 4/9 kennelmate Ballydoyle Tina.
A small stress fracture followed, but she bounced back to win both of her opening-round heats in the Premier Greyhound Racing Oaks at Dunstall Park, in 28.16 and 28.11. She went out in a semi-final that also featured Ballydoyle Tina, who went on to win the final.
Unassuming
Unassuming – 8/1
Unassuming is joint-third favourite at 8/1, giving her an 11.1% chance of claiming the title for trainer Brendan Matthews.
She stamped herself as a classic prospect at Shelbourne Park when running away with the Adopt A Greyhound A2/A3 Bitch 525 final. Fourth into the opening bend, she struck down the back straight and beat Droopys Melon by six and a half lengths in 28.45.
That progress earned her a tilt at both Derbies this year. She was among the entries for the English Derby at Towcester and lined up in the BOYLE Sports Irish Greyhound Derby, where she was quoted at 16/1 to finish as the top bitch.
She made it through to the second round at Shelbourne, where she was drawn in a hot heat alongside Solo And Go and Lennies Dynamic.
Magical Fiona
Magical Fiona – 8/1
Also at 8/1 is Magical Fiona for trainer Patrick Guilfoyle, who is bidding to win the race for a second year running.
The daughter of Ballymac Cashout and Right Nicki shares both a sire and a kennel with last year's winner Magical Mag, and she is a full sister to Guilfoyle's Magical James.
She reached the final of the Galway Unraced ON2/ON3 350 in April, then made the final of the €10,000 Shelbourne Maiden Derby in the summer as the 4/1 third favourite. Friday's opening round will be her biggest test yet.
Magical Be Nifty
Magical Be Nifty – 14/1
Magical Be Nifty is next at 14/1 and could hand Patrick Guilfoyle back-to-back Lifford Oaks wins.
Owned by Pat and Donal Guilfoyle, the daughter of Droopys Jet and Magical Poppy comes from an outstanding litter that also produced Irish Derby contender Waitingforastar. She showed her ability early in the year in the Paul McKenna Memorial at Galway, winning her semi-final by five and a half lengths. She was then narrowly denied by Flyers Penney in the final as the 4/5 favourite.
She gained compensation in style in July, landing the On Faya Galway Oaks final at 9/2. Turning in front, she held off kennelmate and reigning Lifford Oaks champion Magical Mag by two lengths in 28.73, the biggest success of her career.
Rolo Eugenie
Rolo Eugenie – 16/1
Rounding out the leading contenders is Rolo Eugenie at 16/1, a second string to Barry Clancy 's bow behind the favourite.
The daughter of Malachi and Distant Sal won at Newbridge in February, edging Rubys Trinity by a neck in 29.25. She stepped up at Shelbourne Park in March, leading by halfway and making the rest to win her heat of the Guys And Dolls A2/A3 525 in 28.81. Her litter brother Rolo Jasper won a semi-final on the same card.
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Bill is as passionate about Irish football as they come, with an agonising longing to see his country grace a World Cup stage. A League of Ireland devotee and lifelong Man United fan, he knows better than most what sporting heartbreak feels like, and brings that perspective to the BOYLE Sports Blog. With roots in greyhound racing and a curiosity spanning politics, snooker, WWE and beyond, there is rarely a sporting conversation he cannot add to.
