KRIS Lees hunts a third Gosford Gold Cup tomorrow – but the first at the now annual Saturday metropolitan stand-alone meeting. And Newcastle’s leading trainer is pinning his main hopes on Group 1 winner You Wahng measuring up, and clinching a trip north for winter targets. Lees, who won the Cup in 2015 with Oriental Lady (Brenton Avdulla) and then three years later with Singing (Glyn Schofield) - both were raced by Australian Bloodstock syndicates - before the race became an

DYLAN Gibbons is on the doorstep of a career 500 winners and can edge closer with good rides in two of Gosford’s features at tomorrow’s metropolitan stand-alone meeting. The born and raised Novocastrian, who now calls Sydney home, is only seven short of that milestone and has worked hard to establish himself in the riding ranks in town – and is getting just rewards. With 81 winners so far this season (32 in town), he sits sixth on the State premiership table. Gibbons relocate

WITH continuing fine weather forecast, experienced Gosford course manager Steve Scollard is looking forward to presenting a ‘Good 4’ track on Saturday. This will be the sixth annual running of The Coast metropolitan stand-alone meeting – and the first to be run on a now fully renovated circuit. Following the completion of an earlier major infrastructure project in 2024 which saw the home turn re-cambered to a gradient of six per cent to maximise competitive racing, along with

NEARLY 17 years have passed, but Terry Evans has never forgotten the moment! It was June 24 2009 when the then Gosford and now Tuncurry-based trainer saddled $2.80 favorite Verrekeen for the Ian Craig Farewell Handicap (2100m) at his home track to mark the legendary Sydney broadcaster’s final call. Verrekeen made it easy work for the finale of Craig’s outstanding career behind the microphone when she romped home by two and a half lengths on a ‘Heavy 10’ surface. But there was

FITTINGLY the first race run today at Australia’s newest racetrack stayed in local hands. Kembla Grange co-trainers Mitch Beer and George Carpenter proudly put their name in the record books when their $1.30 hotpot Above The Law took the Maiden Plate (1450m) on the Illawarra Grange circuit, inside the main course proper. And it was also the start of a memorable day for the three-year-old gelding’s rider Dylan Gibbons. Taken to the front soon after the start by Gibbons, Above

IT could be a “Golden Moment” indeed for one lucky racegoer at Gosford on Saturday. The Entertainment Grounds has a huge promotion for its annual metropolitan stand-alone meeting, which features three Listed races – the $500,000 The Coast (1600m) for three and four-year-olds, $300,000 Big Dance Eligibility Gosford Gold Cup (2100m), and $250,000 Takeover Target Stakes (1200m). Gosford Race Club chief executive Daniel Lacey has outlined details of the Golden Moment, which offer

GOSFORD’S three Listed features at its annual metropolitan stand-alone meeting on Saturday are shaping as beauties if TAB.com.au’s early markets are a guide. There is no dominant favorite in either of the $500,000 The Coast (1600m), $300,0 Gosford Gold Cup (2100m) and $250,000 Takeover Target Stakes (1200m), ensuring strong betting in all. The trio of black type races highlight a 10-race program, with 212 entries received by Gosford Race Club. Victorian Zambardo is the early

AUSTRALIA’S newest racetrack will be unveiled tomorrow at Kembla Grange – and local racing identity Luke Price has given it the “thumbs up”. The Illawarra Grange, an inside track to the course proper, will host a six-race TAB meeting beginning at 1.20pm. Former successful jockey Price, who co-trains with his father Rob, has ridden on the track and says it will be a winner for sure. “It cambers well and rides well,” he said today. “And it will love rain, and respond really wel

STEVEN Sampson would have walked into Lake Heights Public School on the South Coast this morning with a spring in his step! And with good reason. The Kembla Grange hobby trainer and “retired” primary school teacher landed a $101 winner at the Sapphire Coast yesterday. Ridden by apprentice Rebecca Bronett Prag, Ransaigh Star led all the way in the Maiden Handicap (1205m). The lightly-raced four-year-old was having only his third start, and comfortably defeated $2.60 favorite S

AS far as Fabio Martino is concerned, he’s a star in his own right. Not the Hawkesbury trainer but his I Am Invincible three-year-old All Star, who fetched a cool $1.2m as a 2024 Inglis Australian Easter yearling, but failed to hit the scoreboard in three starts in town last year for Sydney’s all-conquering trainer Chris Waller. Enter Martino’s major client Spartus Bloodstock. “Spartus originally was one of the owners of All Star,” he explained today. “When it was felt that t

BRAD Widdup got his home track’s stand-alone “monkey” off his back – but not with the horse most expected. After $1.22 hotpot Tenenbaum could finish only fourth in the 2YO Clarendon Stakes (1400m) at the opening of yesterday’s 10-race metropolitan program, Hawkesbury’s leading trainer struck back two races later with his first winner at the annual meeting. Bella Khadijah ($7.50), ridden by leading apprentice Braith Nock, relished both blinkers and surging down the extreme out

CHURCHILL’S Choice will attempt to become the first horse this century to complete the Hawkesbury Cup – Scone Cup double in the same year. Trainer Nathan Doyle confirmed a start in Friday week’s Big Dance eligibility $200,000 Scone Cup (1600m) after she overpowered her opposition to take yesterday’s $250,000 Group 3 Hawkesbury Gold Cup over the same distance. Whilst no horse has won both races in the same year since the turn of the century, two have done the double – but in d

SYDNEY Cup winner Changingoftheguard will trial at Newcastle in the morning en route to a two-State campaign. Andrew Gibbons will ride the gelding in a 1200m Open heat at the Beaumont track at 8.30am. “It’s three weeks since he won the Cup (3200m) at Royal Randwick during The Championships,” leading Newcastle trainer Kris Lees said today. “The trial will help keep him ticking over before he heads south to Melbourne for his next start.” That will be in the $300,000 Listed Andr

KRIS Lees has seen a positive in Tavi Time’s outside draw in tomorrow’s $250,000 Richmond Club Hawkesbury Gold Cup (1600m). The leading Newcastle trainer obviously was disappointed when he learnt his million dollar earner would jump from the extreme outside (16) in a capacity Group 3 line-up, which carries Big Dance eligibility status. “That’s going to make it harder of course, but Tavi Time ($15 with Tab.com.au) doesn’t have good gate speed,” Lees said this morning. “Hopeful

BUOYED by an emotional provincial result yesterday, Brad Widdup is looking to finally put his name on his home track’s biggest meeting’s winner’s list tomorrow. Hawkesbury’s leading trainer won the Maiden Plate (1625m) at Wyong with Don’t Tell Polly ($8.50); his 463rd career success and 44th this season. “Don’t Tell Polly was bred by Adrian Whittingham, and he stayed in the filly after we purchased her privately,” Widdup said today. “We put together a syndicate comprising a n

LIKE father, like son! There was no prouder person at today’s Wagga Cup carnival than Paul Murray. The 63-year-old Kembla Grange trainer emulated his legendary late father Bede by winning Murrumbidgee Turf Club’s feature sprint, the $200,000 Town Plate (1200m). More than four decades had elapsed between Bede Murray (who passed away in 2016) winning the race in 1982 with Scorpio (who also landed the Brambles 2YO Classic at Kembla Grange in 1980) and son Paul capturing this yea

BLAKE Ryan has had precious few chances to win a race at his home track’s feature stand-alone meeting. In his maiden season of training, Nacim Dilmi will have his first runners at Saturday’s 10-race metropolitan program. And the respective Hawkesbury and Wyong trainers will be rivals in the Midway Benchmark 72 Handicap (1500m) as they chase a Hawkesbury stand-alone breakthrough. Strawberry Impact (pictured above - Tommy Berry) will be Ryan’s sole representative at the meeting

DAMIEN Lane has reverted to “Plan B” and hopes the long wait will be worthwhile at Hawkesbury on Saturday. The Wyong trainer has withdrawn Oakfield Jupiter from the Group 3 Pioneer Services Hawkesbury Crown (1300m) against her own sex to run in the closer of the 10-race program, the Clarendon Tavern Benchmark 88 Handicap (1400m). “Obviously it wasn’t the way we had intended to go, but Oakfield Jupiter drew off the track in the Crown,” Lane said today. “There was no point goin

EVERYTHING old is new again. Well, sort of – but not for much longer. As Ash Morgan reunites with Private Harry at Eagle Farm on Saturday for the four-year-old’s first start for new trainer Chris Waller, it will be either the horse’s last or second start before being retired to stud. Private Harry’s impending retirement has been announced following YuLong’s purchase of the famed Segenhoe Stud in the Hunter Valley. Kurrinda Bloodstock boss Sean Driver today confirmed the stall

KERRY Parker had never had a runner in the Listed Big Dane Eligibility Wagga Wagga Gold Cup (2000m) when he won it last year with Flying Bandit. Now the Kembla Grange trainer is hoping for a similar result with his first runner Well Timed in tomorrow’s Wagga Town Plate (1200m) as he chases the carnival feature double, with Flying Bandit returning to defend his Cup “crown”. Andrew Adkins will ride topweight Well Timed in the Town Plate, and Jay Ford continues a successful asso