GOTCHA: a police dog gets his man.

THE canine cops in the front-line of the fight against crime were the stars of the show when the national police dog trials came to Hampshire for the first time.

A total of 25 dogs and handlers representing forces as far afield as the Northern Constabulary in Inverness, and the RUC in Northern Ireland converged on Hampshire Police's Netley training HQ for the three-day competition.

And after hours of fierce testing in the areas of obedience, endurance, agility, and criminal work - including searching and apprehending would-be criminals - there was no difficult decision in picking the top team.

Representing Avon and Somerset Constabulary, Pc Lloyd and Erick stole the limelight with what was widely regarded as one of the best ever performances.

From a possible score of 1,000 over the three days they managed an incredible 921 points.

The duo received the title at a prize ceremony at the weekend.

In second place on 767 points was Pc Craven of the Met Police with his dog Charlie Bronson. Just one point behind was Pc Tod, of the City of London Police, with Rocky.

Hampshire's own Pc Dave Jones with his dog Buster - stars of TV's Dog Squad - performed admirably, gaining 622 points.

Sergeant Bill Williamson, of Hampshire Police's Netley-based dog unit, said: "Without meaning to sound smug I'd say the whole operation ran like a Swiss watch.

"It was a tremendous success from beginning to end and the winner gave a phenomenal performance."

Sgt Williamson said a disco for competitors and their families had raised around £600 which would be shared between three charities: Hearing Dogs for the Deaf, Canine Partners for Independence and Pets as Therapy.

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