David Gilbert
“TODAY will be her last run for us,” Peter “Steam” Mitchell told me just prior to the running of last Sunday’s 2000 metre Heywood Cup at Casterton.
Mitchell is one of a dozen owners of the Jamie Opperman trained mare Mulga Lil who was having her 53rd race start.
“One of the owners has bought out the rest of the other owners and it is my understanding that her immediate future will be as a broodmare.”
As is often the case when a horse is having his/her last run for whatever reason (poor form, transfer of interests, end of campaign, etc.), the horse suddenly finds winning form.
This was the scenario at Casterton when Mulga Lil, backed with confidence from $5 into $3.80 favourite, worked hard to lead and then kicked clear to set up a winning lead at the top of the straight.
“What have we done?” was the immediate reaction from Naomi Mitchell (a fellow part owner regarding the sale of the mare) as Mulga Lil flashed past the post with a length and a quarter to spare in winning her seventh career race for total prize money of $134,800.
It was a South Australian quinella with the Sue and Jason Jaensch trained Native Blue claiming second place.
Alas, the Heywood Cup is that in name only as it is a restricted race for 0-58 handicap rated gallopers and worth $27,000, the same as the other six races on Sunday’s program, but at least there was a cup trophy.
After all, only a few owners can brag about having a horse that they won a cup at his/her last start.
For winning jockey Jarrod Lorensini, it was the first leg of a race-to-race double.
Sunday saw the return to Casterton of top country Victorian jockey Dean Yendall and, not surprisingly, he also booted home a double at a track where he has had an incredible amount of success over the years.
It was just as well there were around 30 people in attendance from Heywood, otherwise Casterton racecourse would have been almost deserted.
The run of the day came from the Belinda O’Loughlin trained Soobmerged, who was given no peace in front in the 1800-metre maiden before boxing on tenaciously to be beaten in a photo finish.
EFFORTS RECOGNISED
IT would be interesting to know how many times Drumborg’s Kevin Brough has crossed the border over the years coming to Mount Gambier trots, whether it be for race days or trials.
A top trainer and driver here for many years, Brough was rewarded for his dedication and passion towards harness racing in the South East with life membership of the Mount Gambier Harness Racing Club at its AGM last week.
Brough is still heavily involved in the harness racing game on both sides of the border, helping out partner/trainer Rebecca East.
Not surprisingly, Simon Phillips was returned unopposed as president for another term, while secretary Maxine Milich has entered her 10th year in that role and Neil Shepherd has stepped up to again take on the role as vice president.
What was a surprise was the ballot required to determine the committee for the new season with six nominations for four positions.
“In all my time as secretary, there has never been a ballot, in fact we normally are struggling to get people to fill the committee,” Milich stated.
“I had to go into the constitution of the club to find out how to organise the ballot.”
New faces on the committee include “youngsters” Zac Pearson, Jayson Finnis and Steve Fennell, and the return of the experienced Anthony Rice,
ALL SYSTEMS GO
THIS Sunday’s race meeting here at Mount Gambier is expected to go ahead even if around 20mms of rainfall is received in the days leading up to the event.
That was the confident prediction of Mount Gambier racing president Peter George on Tuesday after the track had been inspected by Adelaide officials that morning and given the nod of approval.
Nominations for the meeting were highly satisfactory (118 for the eight race card), with 23 entries received for the heat of the Jericho Cup over 3150 metres.
Posters advertising the meeting have popped up all around the city in the past fortnight and good bookings have been received for the cancer fundraising luncheon, for which tickets are still available (8725 4466).
DID THEY PULL THE RIGHT REIN?
BORDERTOWN co-trainers Jimmy and Lisa Dodgson must be wondering if they made the right decision to go to Mildura last Saturday.
Their five-year-old mare Heavy Rotation, whom they race with Graeme Garrod of Mount Gambier, was entered for both Morphettville and Mildura on the same day.
The Dodgsons opted to head to Mildura for the 1400-metre 0-58 race where the prize money was inferior by $14,000.
While they came home a winner, the ease with which Heavy Rotation ($-$3.10 fav.) romped home with three lengths to spare for jockey Jarrod Lorensini makes you wonder just how the mare would have fared in that Adelaide race.
If you follow fellow Bordertown trainer Lindsay Cadzow, you are almost guaranteed good value whenever he wins a race.
He supplied the 100/1 winner Wurlies Last Chance in Adelaide over 12 months ago and his only winner this year (prior to last week) was the 20/1 chance Thirty Two Guns at Strathalbyn on June 15.
Last Wednesday week at Murray Bridge, the Cadzow trained Space Equity produced a form reversal to lead nearly all the way in the 2500-metre Benchmark 60 handicap at odds of 25/1.
Space Equity had run last at the same venue over the same distance 11 days prior, yet stewards surprisingly did not inquire into the sudden improvement last week.
Cadzow is a big supporter of Dylan Caboche and the hoop did not let him down, as Space Equity was under siege on more than one occasion over the final 500 metres to get the chocolates in a photo finish.
Earlier at the same venue there was plenty of cheering around the Mount when the locally owned Imposing Suspect improved dramatically at his second career start in the 1400-metre maiden.
Trained by Peter Hardacre, Imposing Suspect ($9) again had Eran Boyd in the saddle following his recent fourth at Bordertown and the four-year-old gelding looked the goods by coming from last to storm past his rivals in the final furlong.
WON HALF OF THE PROGRAM
IT was a stellar afternoon for South East stables at Horsham trots last week, winning four of the eight races.
Leading the way was the Alyce Finnis stable with a double thanks to two of her better pacers, Art Jester and Ever Hoping.
Art Jester ($1.80 fav.), driven by her husband Jayson Finnis, resumed from four-month a spell to win the NR 50-54 pace and his mile rate of 1.56.9 was more than two seconds quicker than for any other race on the program.
Stablemate, Ever Hoping ($3.70) made it back-to-back wins and overcame a tough run to take out the NR 55-65 pace.
The Barry Finnis trained and Jayson Finnis driven Chemical Factor ($3.10) made her long awaited debut in the maiden pace and sat outside the leader before drawing clear for a four-metre victory.
“She is a six-year-old mare and it is fair to say we have had plenty of problems getting her ready to race,” part owner Peter Medhurst commented.
Trainer Greg Howard is having plenty of fun with Samara Fury ($3.60) and the gelding won his second race for the month of August by leading all the way to narrowly take out the NR 47 pace.
