EXPERIENCED Hawkesbury trainer Terry Croft has successfully travelled all over the countryside this year to win races with his mare Zoutastic. Now he figures it’s time to change pace and win one at home on Sunday. Zoutastic resumes in the Skin Fitness Hair and Beauty Provincial Benchmark 64 Handicap (1000m), with her trainer hoping this campaign will lead to even richer pickings. Croft has done a superb job with the four-year-old daughter of Zousain, whom he purchased for onl

LEADING Kembla Grange trainers Rob and Luke Price are importing Claire Ramsbotham to hopefully “rock” at Hawkesbury on Sunday. The talented Canberra apprentice will have her first ride for Team Price on Mr Rock It in the Provincial Benchmark 64 Handicap (1000m). It will also be her first ride at the provincial track. “Claire has ridden in some trials for us, and when asked was happy to come to Hawkesbury,” co-trainer Luke Price said this morning. “Her 3kg claim will be invalu

THE last filly foal of Kris Lees’ former champ Lucia Valentina (pictured) will make her keenly awaited debut on the Kensington track today. But the leading Newcastle trainer is definitely not making any comparisons with his triple Group 1 winner, who sadly lost her life from a colic attack in August last year. “At least not yet anyway,” he said this evening of blueblood three-year-old Erin Jo (by I Am Invincible), who will line up in the Maiden Handicap (1300m), with Nash Raw

REBECCA Bronett Prag has moved to Kembla Grange and will have her first Sydney ride for her new boss Kerry Parker on the Kensington track tomorrow. The Swedish-born apprentice has been booked for a resuming Equilibrist in the Benchmark 64 Handicap (1250m); the closer at the twilight fixture. Bronett Prag’s 3kg city claim will appreciably reduce the topweight’s 62kg burden. “Rebecca has transferred on loan from Canberra trainers Keith Dryden and Libby Snowden, and is keen to h

WHEN Oryx goes back to The Entertainment Grounds to race on Thursday, he’ll have a cheer squad like no other. The former Godolphin gelding will attempt to make it two wins on the bounce when he lines up in the Conditional Benchmark 68 Handicap (1100m). Oryx is raced by a large syndicate headed by Gosford Race Club vice-chairman Michael Griffiths, and includes members of his family, fellow Directors Mark Holton and Peter Kernan, along with a number of staff members, Gosford tr

O' OLE WINNING THE $2M MAGIC MILLIONS CLASSIC WYONG’S Magic Millions 2YO Classic continues to be an excellent guide to “big brother” at the Gold Coast. No better example than last year when the fillies O’Ole and Memo repeated their Wyong quinella in the $2m Magic Millions Classic (1200m) at the Gold Coast the following month. Next Wednesday’s $200,000 Wyong Magic Millions 2YO Classic (1100m) will be the 24 th running of the provincial feature, which has produced four Magic M

BRAD Widdup’s 10 th winner of the month at Newcastle today was indeed a “cut” above average. The leading Hawkesbury trainer had won a Group 2 Matriarch Stakes (Sunset Park) at the Flemington carnival along with a number of Sydney victories in November, including Hyperbolic at Rosehill Gardens yesterday. But winning with a five-year-old mare having her first start, and who had been out of the stable for nearly two years, was something special. The unusually named Like A Surge

GREG McFarlane reached a career milestone on one hand, and reunited with his winningest jockey Jon Grisedale on the other. Talented four-year-old mare Bremel’s city breakthrough at Canterbury last Friday night rung up 200 wins for the Gosford trainer. Then he was on the road again yesterday morning to make it win number 201 when three-year-old filly Barsandbi broke through for her first victory at the Kempsey TAB meeting. “That’s what you have to do to try to win races,” McFa

A record crowd has turned out for The Gong Raceday where Gringotts again stole the show. 6,935 people were trackside for Kembla Grange Racecourse’s annual standalone meeting, undeterred by the incessant rain. “The Illawarra Region has really embraced The Gong since its inception in 2019 and the support for the event has been phenomenal,” The Illawarra Turf Club CEO Steven Keene said. “All the hospitality was booked out months ago. To have almost 7,000 people on course and set

THE cheers could be heard from Adelaide! Newcastle trainer Mark Minervini celebrated his 60 th birthday in the best possible way by winning the closer at Muswellbrook yesterday. The South Aussie expat returned to his home State for a family shindig – and it became even better when Smiling Prophet took the Rusty Spanner Sprint (1000m) first-up at $6.50. Ridden by Christian Reith, the six-year-old mare upset $1.35 hotpot Saratoga Power to post the sixth win of her career. Smil

WHEN it comes to Hawkesbury race meetings this season, local trainers Brad Widdup and Jason Attard are like “peas in a pod”. For the fourth time at home this season they again shared the spotlight today, each winning a race. And their results were popular with punters; Widdup’s Admire Me and Attard’s Nesrine (pictured) both starting well backed favorites – and also they were the only provincial winners. Not surprisingly given their form, Widdup and Attard are at the top of th

THE boss was right! Gosford trainer Jake Hull gave due credit to his major owner John O’Connor after $26 chance Rathoran turned in a blistering first-up performance to score at Wyong yesterday. “I felt Rathoran was better placed in shorter races with the speed on earlier in his career, and John was keen to try him over longer,” Hull said this morning. “I had reservations, but the gelding showed at the end of last campaign when we ran him at 1400m to 1600m that the boss was on

MARK Minervini readily admits that it’s been an ordinary start to the season. After 22 winners last season, only two have come the experienced Newcastle trainer’s way in almost the first third of the 2025-26 racing year. One of those winners was Rubi’s Serve, and Minervini is taking the five-year-old mare back to town at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday hoping she can put him back in the metropolitan spotlight. He has booked last season’s champion apprentice Braith Nock, who will

TALENTED mare Harlem Queen’s last visit to Queensland was eventful to say the least! But her Newcastle trainer Nathan Doyle is hoping this next sojourn next will result in a totally different outcome. The recent Hawkesbury Listed Ladies Day Cup winner fronts up at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday as Doyle plots a path toward a return to Queensland in search of another Magic Millions feature. Prior to capturing his maiden Group 1 with Private Harry at Rosehill in March, he won the

A wide barrier has skittled Blake Ryan’s hopes of producing recent acquisition Silk Lace for her debut at home tomorrow. The Hawkesbury trainer this morning put a hold on the three-year-old filly beginning her career in the Irresistible Pools & Spas Provincial Maiden Plate (1100m) when she drew the outside barrier in a field of 11. “No point asking her to try to win her first start from that draw,” Ryan said. “She is only small, and we’ll wait for the Queanbeyan Cup meeting o

LAST YEAR'S PROVINCIAL MIDWAY WINNER MATCHA LATTE WITH SARA RYAN HAWKESBURY will launch the 2026 Provincial-Midway Championships at its return meeting on Thursday, February 19. RacingNSW has announced the dates for the six qualifying races, along with the Wild Card at Newcastle on Thursday, April 2. “Each of the qualifiers again will carry $150,000 prizemoney, and the Final at Royal Randwick on April 11 on the second day of The Championships is worth $1m,” RacingNSW general m

WINNING a Provincial Maiden Handicap on the surface might not appear anything above the ordinary. But delve deeper and it soon becomes clear that Gosford trainer Kylie Gavenlock’s breakthrough triumph with four-year-old mare Murphilly on her home track yesterday was far from an ordinary result. Indeed it was pretty special. After settling last of the seven runners, jockey Grant Buckley took the Super Maiden Handicap (1600m) into his own keeping leaving the 400m when he got Mu

SARA Ryan was sufficiently impressed. The young Wyong trainer was looking to start a new business in her own right after a successful stint as Domeland’s head trainer on the Central Coast when she noticed former Newcastle mare Diamond Model was up for sale online. “I really liked her type, and was able to buy her (for $16,000) and brought some new clients in to race her,” Ryan explained today. “On her breeding, I was pretty confident about getting her out to 2000m.” Ridden by

DON'T TELL JACK WITH OWNER/STRAPPER & SARAH BELL HAVE horse, will travel! Wyong trainers John Cooper and Shaun Harvey went in opposite directions yesterday to support country race meetings – and each got a desired result. They both had specific reasons for their trips; Cooper to the Riverina region of south-western NSW for the once-a-year Cup meeting on a dirt track, and Harvey to the mid north coast hinterland at Bowraville. It was no coincidence either that both attended th

WHEN is Sunday not on a Sunday? When it’s winning on Friday of course. A five-year-old mare named Sunday and trained at Hawkesbury by Jackie Greentree made it two wins on end when successful at Orange yesterday. Ridden by Jake Pracey-Holmes, the $7 chance did all the work and showed plenty of grit to take the Class 1 Handicap (1400m). Sunday made the running and, after being headed by Luna Jet ($3) in the straight, would not be denied and fought back to add to her victory as