Northford and Psycho Lines

PART 1

The Northford / Psycho Strain is probably the most known strain of what is referred to as the Irish Stafford’s. Like the formation of the Dublin Red Strain, the formation originated with good quality English Stafford’s sent over to Ireland and bred for one purpose only, to work.

The well known English Staffordshire Bull Terrier breeder, Bill Boylan bred one of his Ch. Stafford's, Ch. Brinstock Glenagow to a bitch called Dealer's Delight. This mating produced the start of a very game line of dogs, starting with a dog called Black Tiger. This famous trail dog changed owners a great many times and was bred many times. His owners include names like Terry Byrne, George Hegarty and Gerry Allen. This dog was put across a bitch called Cork Rose, who was owned by George Hegarty and if you take a look at Psycho's pedigree, you will see her name 6 times in the 4th generation. Cork Rose was also put across George Crotty's Sam and Tom Haughey's North Star, who’s Sire and Dam were straight Stafford/EBT crosses.

When Black Tiger was mated to Cork Rose they produced a dog that became very known in the Irish Trails as a very good badger dog. This dog was known as The Great Geronimo and as a result of his performance in the trials you will find many top class dogs that has his name in their pedigrees. Geronimo was also put across a bitch called Evergreen’s Tiny Peggy who was also known as Doneal Flynn’s Old Peggy producing Allen’s Peggy.

When Allen’s Peggy was mated to Martin Walsh’s Whitey the result was Allen’s Major and Molly. Major was said to have won a few matches and were also said to be as game as any other well bred Stafford and his sister Molly was used in the badger trails and unfortunately got a cut in her artery and bled to death out on a dig, but before her death she was put to her brother Major and from this breeding Gerry Allen got three pups.

Allen’s Bruce was a white male who died from an illness when he was about one year old. Hanlon’s Rahora Lass was a white female with a black patch over her left eye. She was a very small bitch (under 30lbs) and ended up on the yard of P. Murphy who also had the Stormer dog.

PART 2 

Psycho’s first match was against C. Mc.C’s Rocky a two time winning dog who was going for his championship. The match was held at 40lbs top, with T. Lee acting as referee. Psycho won in 37 minutes.

His second match was against Bo & Chester’s Nero, with the match held at 40lbs top. T. Lee acted as referee and Nero was picked up 1hr 02mins, making Psycho the winner.

His third was a rematch against Bo & Chester’s Nero. The other party wanted the match at 42lbs, but at the weigh-in both dogs were under 40lbs. “John-the-dog” of London refereed and Psycho won his championship in 1hr 51mins.

His fourth was against Declan Gilling’s Black Sam a very hard biting one-time winner. The match was held at 42lbs top, but this time Sam wouldn't scratch at 29 minutes making Ch. Psycho the winner.

His fifth was against Murphy & Cooper’s Stormer, with the match being held at 43lbs top. Boston Blacky of Bronson Kennels acted as referee. Ch. Psycho weighed in at 40 1/4lbs and Stormer the bigger dog at 42lbs. Stormer had the best of the later half of the match and Stevie B picked Ch. Psycho up at 1hr 03mins, making Stormer the winner. 

 His third was a rematch against Bo & Chester’s Nero. The other party wanted the match at 42lbs, but at the weigh-in both dogs were under 40lbs. “John-the-dog” of London refereed and Psycho won his championship in 1hr 51mins. His fourth was against Declan Gilling’s Black Sam a very hard biting one-time winner. The match was held at 42lbs top, but this time Sam wouldn't scratch at 29 minutes making Ch. Psycho the winner.

His fifth was against Murphy & Cooper’s Stormer, with the match being held at 43lbs top. Boston Blacky of Bronson Kennels acted as referee. Ch. Psycho weighed in at 40 1/4lbs and Stormer the bigger dog at 42lbs. Stormer had the best of the later half of the match and Stevie B picked Ch. Psycho up at 1hr 03mins, making Stormer the winner.

 After his retirement Psycho unfortunately died in a kennel fight with one of his sons named Moonshine out of Northford Brady. After this accident, Moonshine was rolled into many dogs and it was said that he was a good dog. It was however also said that he quit at more than one occasion, first into a Stafford named Lance after 12 minutes and then when he met an APBT out of Ed Reid's lines he wouldn't start. After this he was matched twice and rumor says that he died after the second match.

All the dogs in Ch. Psycho’s pedigree were tested out and proved to be game in the badger trails of Ireland and much has been said about this breeding. There are many who will say that Ch. Psycho were not a pure Stafford strain since there are some EBT blood in this breeding and in my opinion they are right.

There is a small amount of EBT blood in this line and it comes from Haughey's North Star as both his Sire and Dam were Stafford / EBT crosses. A friend from Derry, Ireland wrote us a letter saying that the strain contained some EBT blood and I'll quote his words.

"”I can say that the Psycho blood is not pure Staff blood, and in that pedigree you will see the name Rowdy. She was owned by Tom Haughey when I met him in Lurgan Trail 1962-63. She was a first class badger bitch who was 1/2 bred Stafford X Bull Terrier. She produced two great sons, Tom's own North Star and his litter brother Blunder's Lad, owned by Jerry McIntyre, who is the brother to Jerome McIntyre. When "Rowdy produced these two sons the Sire was Kilwickie Lad, a great badger dog in the early 1960's, and he too was a 1/2 bred Stafford to Bull Terrier. However, all blood lines produce good and bad. So you take it as you find it.”

Ricky sold Ch. Psycho to Stevie, which renamed him to Ch. Hagler and apart from now owning the well known Psycho, Stevie already had made a name for himself with his prefix "Northford" and his line of dogs. Being from Northern Ireland, he simply took North out of Northern and added ford out of Stafford and voila, a new prefix was born. A closer look at the pedigrees of the Northford dogs will show you that these dogs goes back to good game proven badger dogs, and when put to Psycho a new Strain became known as the Northford / Psycho Strain.

The foundation dogs to the Northford strain were from the same lines as the Flynn strains along with some game show lines that were tested in the Irish Trail. If we follow their pedigrees (below and in the pedigree section) we should be able to find common ancestors on both the Sire and Dam's side.

Let's start with Allen's Geronimo dog. Nicky Sheehan owned a sister of Geronimo and when she was put to Billy Rickard's Tyrone of Cuileog she produced Jackie Adams' Socks aka Derry Macash Rascal and Dick Holland's Mournview Chieftain, which were both known in Ireland for their ability at the badger trails. 

Northford Bruce was a half brother of these two well known dogs on the Sire's side and when put to Northford Piggy from the Rapparee line they produced Dave Cooper's Old Sheila, which when bred to Tom Haughey's Northern Rust out of Pinky Fleville's Wolf Island Rose  and Derry Macash Rascal produced Northford Sheila II. When Sheila II was put to Ch. Psycho it resulted in Northford Minter, Pepper, Jonah, Silver and Blue Bell