The relentless squeeze of smaller, independent bookmakers by the bigger players in the market still has a few furlongs to run yet.

Paddy Power, which owns about one-quarter of the 1,000 or so betting shops in Ireland and one of the few operators to make any money from retail outlets, notified the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) on Monday it intends to buy two more.

The company plans to snap up the Donabate and Swords outlets of The Track bookmakers. The Track is owned by Balbriggan-based businessman James Reilly. No, not the former health minister whose bailiwick is nearby, but rather the local publican who owns the Harvest Inn.

Track Sports, the parent company behind the family-owned chain that has grown to about 20 shops, has a deficit on its balance sheet of about €260,000, according to its last-filed set of accounts, for June 2013.

The buyout of the two north Dublin stores is the subject of a preliminary investigation at the CCPC. Submissions from interested parties are due by the end of the month.

With Ladbrokes putting its entire Irish estate under review and closures expected, there is no sign yet of Paddy Power easing up as its rivals suffer.