DUGGAN “HELPED” BACK INTO THE WINNING LIST

ADAM Duggan’s partner Jess has been “shouldering” an extra load in recent months.

And the Gosford trainer was quick to acknowledge her tremendous help in the light of his season opening success with lightly-raced Erina at Newcastle’s Beaumont track yesterday.

Duggan underwent shoulder surgery in Sydney seven weeks ago to repair a damaged rotator cuff, which had been causing him grief.

“I was educating a young horse in the barriers about five months ago and he became frightened and went right over the top of me,” he explained today.

“There was no option than to have the surgery, and it’s necessary to have my right arm in a sling for three months (another five weeks to go). Because I’m right-handed, it’s been difficult and Jess has done a terrific job helping out along with a few others."

“I’m very appreciative of everyone’s assistance. It was nice to get another win with Erina yesterday.”

Duggan has had only a dozen runners since Shalash scored at his home track in Aprill, his 14th from a boutique stable last season.

He produced the now five-year-old Kermadec mare Erina to score at double figure odds on Newcastle’s course proper on August 9 last year in a 1250m Maiden Handicap against her own sex.

She had another three starts without winning, and went for an extended break.

“Erina had one run too many, and needed a really good break,” Duggan said.

“It did her the world of good, and she has come back a better mare.”

Ridden by Dylan Gibbons (whose father Andrew rode Duggan’s first winner Mr Blue Sky at Gosford in May 2007), Erina ($11), with blinkers on, led throughout against her own sex in a Benchmark 64 Handicap (1350m) to comfortably defeat beat Beverly Hills ($8) and $101 rank outsider Pearler.

That was her sixth start, and second this campaign.

The mare is raced by her breeder Peter Horsnell, who named her as he grew up at Erina on the Central Coast.

She is the second and last foal of the unraced King Cugat mare Charmambo, who has been retired from breeding.

Her first foal Pressford (by Press Statement) never raced either.

Duggan considers Erina’s best chance of snaring a metropolitan breakthrough, in a Midway Benchmark, would be on a wet track.

Her debut victory was on a ‘Heavy 10’, and the Beaumont track yesterday was rated a ‘Soft 6’.

Duggan had hoped to clinch a Beaumont double – as he did 12 months ago when the now retired Divine Bene added to Erina’s win – but Brown Sugar ($5), also raced by Horsnell and ridden by Gibbons, ran well but found it hard to make up enough ground and ran third to well supported Better Late ($3.90) in the Provincial Benchmark 68 Handicap (1200m).

Ash Morgan made short work of Better Late’s outside draw in a field of nine to hustle him to the lead, and he was never threatened, scoring by more than two and a quarter lengths.

Four-year-old Better Late, also having his second run back, gave Newcastle trainer Nathan Doyle his seventh winner in the first month of the new season. STORY BY JOHN CURTIS, AUGUST 26, 2026. PIC BY BRADLEY PHOTOS