Chief Stipe

Time we revisited the Mess-ara garbage.

Industry Racing NSW's Newmarket dream: 1000-horse training facility planned Racehorses climb the Warren Hill gallop at Newmarket, England. Racing NSW plans to use the Newmarket training facility as a model for a Sydney facility. Picture: Alan Crowhurst / Getty Images By Ray Thomas 07:04pm • 26 August 2024 0 Comments Racing NSW has reiterated plans to develop a major training centre close to Sydney that will be similar to England's famous Newmarket training and racing complex. The bold vision to have more than 1000 horses trained on the site with multiple racetrack surfaces and infrastructure is a cornerstone of the Racing NSW's draft Strategic Plan released on Monday. The central theme of the Strategic Plan is to future-proof the NSW racing industry against the "challenges and headwinds" it faces in coming years including declining wagering turnover, equine welfare issues and to grow engagement in the sport through all demographics. • Rosehill sale won't happen ‘if members vote against it': ATC Racing NSW has taken the unprecedented step of providing a draft of its 2024 Strategic Plan for industry consideration and consultation before finalising the document. The development of the training centre is a major pillar of Racing NSW's long-term plan but is not contingent on the Rosehill racetrack sale proposal. The Australian Turf Club has been progressing an unsolicited proposal to the NSW Government for the sale of Rosehill. In the draft Strategic Plan document, Racing NSW revealed it would "be analysing this (Rosehill sale) proposal in detail and ensuring the proper due diligence is completed and the outcomes are in the best interests of the NSW Thoroughbred Racing Industry.'' Racing NSW chief executive Peter V'landys (left) and chief operating officer Graeme Hinton appear at the state government's inquiry into the proposal to develop Rosehill Racecourse. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short • Rosehill sale inquiry: V'landys takes aim at ‘smear campaign' Racing NSW is still sourcing potential sites for the new training centre that would provide trainers with the opportunity to "acquire their own training base as an asset for their businesses". "Currently, trainers conducting their businesses on racecourse lands pay rent for the use of their stables but are rarely able to procure any such assets within their business,'' the document read. "Accordingly, the new training centre will provide an opportunity for trainers to sub-divide portions of land for their own stables in particular and potentially housing.'' With owners collectively losing $273 million in NSW each year, the draft Strategic Plan identifies the "defraying of owners costs" as a key element in the future sustainability of the NSW racing industry. "Racing NSW has been working with trainers, owners, race clubs and suppliers to firstly identify the cost base of ownership and what elements of these costs can be addressed,'' the document read. "This review of costs will incorporate areas such as staffing, veterinary fees, feed supplies and transport to identify opportunities for the industry to reduce costs such as by maximising economies of scale or eliminating monopolistic behaviour.'' Racing NSW has called for submissions from participants and interested parties by September 13 before the Strategic Plan is finalised. Read all news by Ray Thomas

Read @curious 's post.

Nothing is happening here. Both dogs were cleared to return to their trainers. Seizure is an extravagent word for any number of things that could have happened. They may have fainted from exhaustion. I've decided. Be very very careful @Yankiwi where you head with this.

The biggest disconnect occurred when McKenzie pushed marketing off the NZ Racing Board aka TAB aka TABNZ balance sheet and devolved it to the codes WITHOUT providing any funding. It made what little he did look good. ENTAIN seemed to have taken on much more marketing for all three codes. However still work to be done in each code to promote their respective code and more direct participants. You can't entirely blame the code management as on the one hand they were struggling with declining distributions from TAB and then they were landed with the task of marketing wagering as well!

Could it have something to do with a reduction in the number of dogs? You can't hold races if there are no dogs unless you centralise all to one track. Is that what you are proposing? Too small a sample size to conclude anything. However that hasn't stopped you in the past. Your stats are pointless without a measure of variance. I can recommend a good text book on the subject. What do you mean "once again"? As you have said yourself the sample size is very very small. What is the natural attritition/injury rate of racing a Greyhound? I suggest you look at other jurisdictions data and come up with a figure to measure against. Until you do your ramblings have no significance and can be ignored.

I'm surprised you haven't criticised the fact Waller had half of the Grp 1 field. Oh...that's right your snitch is only local.

Thomson back in the fast lane www.racing.com Pride Of Jenni was not the only star working into her Cox Plate campaign at Cranbourne on Saturday. While the Cox Plate favourite was out and about preparing for her first run for more than four months in next Saturday’s Memsie Stakes, for the other star of the turf, his work on the track and his absence from the action were even more significant. Brent Thomson sat on a horse for a fast gallop for the first time in 23 years on Saturday morning when he and an imported horse called Warnie zoomed around the Cranbourne training centre for trainer Ciaron Maher. For the 66-year-old, the old anticipation was there pre-gallop as was the buzzing exhilaration post-gallop, but mostly there was an overwhelming feeling of familiarity. “It seemed a bit natural,” he said a few hours later at The Valley on Saturday. “But I think 23 years is a hell of a gap since I’ve gone fast on one.” Thomson used to go fast on plenty of horses, bringing him fame and fortune throughout the world. But it was at The Valley especially that he established himself as a rider of supreme talent winning four Cox Plates in five years, beginning with Fury’s Order in 1975 when the former Kiwi nicknamed “the babe” was just 17. Two years later, he won for George Hanlon on Family Of Man and a year later, he rode So Called to victory for Colin Hayes. In 1979 came his most famous Cox Plate win when the ill-fated Dulcify space his rivals in what turned out to be the final race he would finish. Thomson took to social media platform X on Saturday to express his delight at the morning’s work. “Well, it was a milestone morning,” he wrote. I rode my first fast gallop on Warnie … loved it and had a little blow myself,” Thomson’s return to trackwork may also pave the way for him to again be an active Cox Plate player as he revealed there was a possibility he could be asked back to the track in a few weeks to ride at the traditional Breakfast With The Best. He said that while he has been riding for Maher in slow work since February, he hadn’t seen a lot of the country’s most talked-about horse, but he certainly has felt her presence. “I don’t have much to do with her, but she looks lovely and strong,” Thomson said of Pride Of Jenni. “I think they are all pretty proud they have a mare like her in the stable. Everyone loves a champion. “I know just around the stable – I asked Sammy, who rides her when I’ve been down there – and she said she is absolutely enjoying herself. “If you are looking ahead to the Cox Plate, you’d just think this track is readymade for her. If you had a pick of rides this far out, hypothetically, you’d be going ‘she’s the one’.” Thomson said Pride Of Jenni’s front-running style compared to that of Vo Rogue some 40 years ago when he and fellow rivals of the bold Queenslander would try to come up with ways of beating him. “If she’s in her best form, I don’t know how they are going to beat her,” he said. “It’s a very hard thing to take her on as you destroy your own chances doing so.”

Another one of my "idols" @Huey. Foxton Boy does well but not surprisingly when having half the starters lined up! Will there be crys for restricting the number of horses a Trainer can have in one race? Or will they applaud excellence?

Waller's mares rise as Via Sistina lands Winx Stakes Kerrin McEvoy rides Via Sistina to victory in the Group 1 Winx Stakes at Randwick. Picture: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images By Ray Thomas 06:09pm • 24 August 2024 0 Comments Via Sistina, Zougotcha and Fangirl provided trainer Chris Waller with an all-mares Group 1 trifecta in the race named after the greatest of them all, Winx, at Royal Randwick on Saturday. Waller didn't know where to look as his trio of outstanding mares sprinted to the finish wide apart in the first major of the new season, the $1 million Winx Stakes (1400m). Kerrin McEvoy on Via Sistina took a "short cut" home near the inside to give Waller his eighth win in the weight-for race that was formerly known as the Warwick Stakes but was renamed in honour of Winx, a three-time winner herself in 2016-17-18. Waller, who has now trained 162 Group 1 winners during his celebrated career, had a memorable afternoon at Randwick with his Winx Stakes trifecta the highlight and complementing Joliestar's stunning Group 3 Show County Quality win and the earlier successes of Strathtay and Medatsu. Via Sistina, formerly one of Europe's top mares before being purchased by Yulong, has won two Group 1 races from three Australian starts. She also won the Ranvet Stakes in autumn. "Oviously, she's a very smart horse, and yeah, I'm privileged to be training horses like her,'' Waller said. "She's a pick-up for our stable, the others are stalwarts and she's beaten them today. "It was a beautiful ride from Kerrin (McEvoy) he didn't go around a horse, saved ground and had plenty of horse topping the famous Randwick rise, yeah, she was strong all the way to the line. "I said to Tommy (Berry) on Zougotcha just to make sure you're right there, that's her normal style of racing, she travelled beautifully up to the 200m and just got caught on the line. "Fangirl was having her first run for a while and got flushed into a tricky spot. The barrier draw wasn't kind to her. "It probably cost her more than Via Sistina but it was her first run back and she was terrific after a career threatening injury.'' Via Sistina ($11) came from well back on the turn to run down Zougotcha ($6.50) and score by a half head with Fangirl ($2.40 favourite) a long neck away third. The Waller stable trifecta led home the Ciaron Maher-trained duo of Semana (fourth) and Detonator Jack (fifth) with the stayers Zardozi (sixth) and the fast finishing Riff Rocket (seventh) producing pleasing comeback runs. Kerrin McEvoy and Chris Waller with the Winx Stakes trophy. Picture: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images Waller has such a wealth of equine talent in his Rosehill stable for the spring carnival, his biggest problem will be trying to keep them from clashing too often. With this in mind, Waller hinted that Via Sistina and stablemate Riff Rocket (seventh) may go straight to Melbourne for the Group 1 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington on September 7. "It would mean Via Sistina will probably stay down there in Melbourne for the spring,'' Waller said. "But we are not losing anything, we will still have good representation in Sydney, but I need to split them up. "Via Sistina is probably our No.1 seed for the Cox Plate unless Fangirl wins likes he she did in the King Charles (III Stakes) again.'' McEvoy described Via Sistina as being like a "locomotive" after the mare charged to victory and gave the jockey the 85th Group 1 win of his career – 73 on Australian racetracks. "It was a great win, she's just a winner basically,'' McEvoy said. "I've only sat on her once, which was last Saturday, and she was on her own, but she's just a competitor. "But Chris (Waller) just said look, she's in really good form, the unknown was first-up at 1400m in this grade. "So, I just wanted to let her tell me where she wanted to be in the run. She jumped in the air a little bit and got sort of back and ended up on the rail, inside Fangirl. "I thought, I'll cut the corner which made it a little bit easier, rather than James (McDonald) who got shuffled back a little and had to come wide." McEvoy's decision to go back inside on Via Sistina saved lengths and proved decisive in the tight finish. "I was happy to do that because I think the inside has been drying out all day,'' he said. "Then, Via Sistina really motored the last furlong. It was a fantastic training effort to see her do that first up at that level – the world is her oyster this prep now." Berry said Zougotcha "showed her versatility" with a brave effort to race on speed, forging to the front over the rise and defying her rivals until Via Sistina collared her near the line. "There wasn't a lot of speed in the race and she was outside the leader,'' Berry said of Zougotcha. "She was just beaten by a freak today. I was definitely not stopping. I'd love to see the sectionals of the winner. It was just too good on the day." Fangirl's rider James McDonald said the mare lost no admirers in defeat. "She is great, she has returned in good order. I was very proud of her effort,'' he said. R8 Randwick (NSW) Good 4 View Form 1st 7. Via Sistina (7) T:Chris Waller J:Kerrin Mc Evoy Margin - W SP $11 2nd 9. Zougotcha (6) T:Chris Waller J:Tommy Berry Margin 0.1L W SP $6.5 3rd 6. Fangirl (9) T:Chris Waller J:James Mc Donald Margin 0.5L W SP $2.4 4th 10. Semana (5) T:Ciaron Maher J:Dylan Gibbons Margin 1.3L W SP $9.5 View All Runners Read all news by Ray Thomas

I see Chris Waller had half the starters in the GRP 1 Winx stakes yesterday and got the Trifecta.

Without Owners you have no product. Owners get their excitement through their vicarious connection to winning. Owners involve their family and friends in that excitement.

Agree.

First three home in the Winx Stakes. Looks like a good season looming for Waller. @Huey I'm a Waller fan boy (your words). Are you going to diss Waller from Foxton as well as Te Akau?

Punters are probably reeling but specifically what was wrong with the ride?

Who cares what they wear. I'd rather that they had a better studio setup if they are going to persist with a 2 person dialogue. The go to the wide shot with no table when they show full screen graphics. I don't know who is advising them but they need to have a look at improving the graphics and their size/defintion so that less screen real estate is needed. It's like someone has chose the font, size and colour scheme and they are sticking to it without actually doing any user testing.

In my view the best option for Palestine would be for Israel to take it over completely and manage it as an Israeli State. Hamas control the country currently - if they wanted peace why did they attack Israel 7 October 2023?

So Palestine and Palestinians are artificial constructs that doesn't actually have any foundation? As for bombing the crap out of people I gather you apply a different test to Hamas? I guess you don't adhere to Matthew 26, 26:52 "Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword."

Is there a new track manager at Otaki? I know about 12 years ago some weren't happy with the then manager. However I understand they were constrained by the irrigation system.

Yes and compared to a conference centre what was its occupancy rate? My point exactly. What happened in the three decades after it was built? You can't blame the last decade!!

I've been to many sales and know exactly how horse traders work. Been like that ever since Texas Jack tried to buy an Apaloosa off Chief Powhatan. Or more on topic - since Thomas Darley conned Sheikh Mirza II into selling the Bedouin colt - The Darley Arabian. Why would I bother when you have the answer and won't publish it. Better things to do than chase your "got the pip" conspiracies.

The old Stud/Bloodstock/Buyer conspiracy theory. Yeah nah!

Yes they HAVE to run racing as self-sustaining business and they don't have a monopoly i.e. the have a strong competitor next door in NSW. Although are there cracks emerging in NSW. PS: They also irrigate and invest in frequent track renovations in VIC.

BettingIndustry Tabcorp fined $4.6m for betting licence breaches Tabcorp has been hit with a massive $4.6 million fine for wagering law breaches. By Adam Dobbin 12:35pm • 23 August 2024 5 Comments Betting firm Tabcorp has been hit with an eye-watering $4.6 million fine by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission for "systemic operational deficiencies and non-compliance with the conditions of its wagering licence". The unprecedented penalty follows extensive investigations by the Commission into Tabcorp which unearthed several instances of non-compliance with its regulatory obligations over a 2-½ year period. Included in the raft of findings was an instance where a Tabcorp account manager placed a ‘Responsible Gambling Call' to a customer due to concerning betting behaviour which concluded with a $2000 deposit match offer being allocated to the customer's account. "This action is indicative of a culture in which the licence holder's harm minimisation obligations were not taken seriously," Commission Chair Fran Thorn said. "The recorded call provides evidence of a lack of commitment to responsible gambling policies and demonstrates a lack of concern for the customer's wellbeing. "Instead of offering support or making suggestions to help the customer manage their gambling, the call was used as an opportunity to encourage them to continue gambling." • Gillon McLachlan appointed $1.5 million-a-year Tabcorp CEO In handing down the monster fine, Ms. Thorn added that Tabcorp had repeatedly breached the Wagering and Betting Licence and Responsible Gambling Code of Conduct between August 2020 and February 2023. "Tabcorp's breaches reflect systemic operational deficiencies and non-compliance with the conditions of its licence, the consequences of which have included significant harm to a customer," Ms Thorn said. Tabcorp has been slugged with a $4.6 million fine by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission • Is Gillon McLachlan the man to turn around Tabcorp's fortunes? "The hefty fine, the largest the Commission has ever issued to Tabcorp, is proportionate to the seriousness of the licensee's misconduct. It sends a clear message to the gambling industry that this kind of behaviour is not acceptable and will not be tolerated." Other breaches which led to the substantial fine includes instances of direct marketing material being sent to a customer six times despite the customer having opted out of receiving the material. The Commission also declared Tabcorp had "failed to minimise the potential for gambling harm through inadequate training of employees" and "failed to provide appropriate support to a customer exhibiting observable signs of distress or indicators of potential gambling harm". To address the breaches, Tabcorp has been ordered to implement a transformation program to overhaul its operations. "The Commission has given Tabcorp clear instructions on what it must do to improve its operations and prioritise gambling harm minimisation," Ms. Thorn added. "The directed transformation program is intended to future proof Tabcorp's gambling operations to ensure it complies with the law. "We will be actively monitoring to ensure that the transformation program requirements are not only implemented quickly but are effective in ensuring ongoing compliance with the law." Following news of the decision by the VGCCC, a spokesperson for Tabcorp said "the harm minimisation measures in place by Tabcorp at the time did not meet community or regulatory expectations. Nor did it meet the expectations that current management expect of the company and its people. "Tabcorp has since taken significant steps to improve customer safety, including re-structuring the Safer Gambling Team which has led to an increase in customer interventions. "We are also introducing new technology to detect changes in customer behaviour faster so we can intervene sooner to protect customers from gambling harm. "Tabcorp will continue to work collaboratively with the VGCCC to support the important work they do to keep the community safe." Read all news by Adam Dobbin

BettingIndustry Tabcorp fined $4.6m for betting licence breaches Tabcorp has been hit with a massive $4.6 million fine for wagering law breaches. By Adam Dobbin 12:35pm • 23 August 2024 5 Comments Betting firm Tabcorp has been hit with an eye-watering $4.6 million fine by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission for "systemic operational deficiencies and non-compliance with the conditions of its wagering licence". The unprecedented penalty follows extensive investigations by the Commission into Tabcorp which unearthed several instances of non-compliance with its regulatory obligations over a 2-½ year period. Included in the raft of findings was an instance where a Tabcorp account manager placed a ‘Responsible Gambling Call' to a customer due to concerning betting behaviour which concluded with a $2000 deposit match offer being allocated to the customer's account. "This action is indicative of a culture in which the licence holder's harm minimisation obligations were not taken seriously," Commission Chair Fran Thorn said. "The recorded call provides evidence of a lack of commitment to responsible gambling policies and demonstrates a lack of concern for the customer's wellbeing. "Instead of offering support or making suggestions to help the customer manage their gambling, the call was used as an opportunity to encourage them to continue gambling." • Gillon McLachlan appointed $1.5 million-a-year Tabcorp CEO In handing down the monster fine, Ms. Thorn added that Tabcorp had repeatedly breached the Wagering and Betting Licence and Responsible Gambling Code of Conduct between August 2020 and February 2023. "Tabcorp's breaches reflect systemic operational deficiencies and non-compliance with the conditions of its licence, the consequences of which have included significant harm to a customer," Ms Thorn said. Tabcorp has been slugged with a $4.6 million fine by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission • Is Gillon McLachlan the man to turn around Tabcorp's fortunes? "The hefty fine, the largest the Commission has ever issued to Tabcorp, is proportionate to the seriousness of the licensee's misconduct. It sends a clear message to the gambling industry that this kind of behaviour is not acceptable and will not be tolerated." Other breaches which led to the substantial fine includes instances of direct marketing material being sent to a customer six times despite the customer having opted out of receiving the material. The Commission also declared Tabcorp had "failed to minimise the potential for gambling harm through inadequate training of employees" and "failed to provide appropriate support to a customer exhibiting observable signs of distress or indicators of potential gambling harm". To address the breaches, Tabcorp has been ordered to implement a transformation program to overhaul its operations. "The Commission has given Tabcorp clear instructions on what it must do to improve its operations and prioritise gambling harm minimisation," Ms. Thorn added. "The directed transformation program is intended to future proof Tabcorp's gambling operations to ensure it complies with the law. "We will be actively monitoring to ensure that the transformation program requirements are not only implemented quickly but are effective in ensuring ongoing compliance with the law." Following news of the decision by the VGCCC, a spokesperson for Tabcorp said "the harm minimisation measures in place by Tabcorp at the time did not meet community or regulatory expectations. Nor did it meet the expectations that current management expect of the company and its people. "Tabcorp has since taken significant steps to improve customer safety, including re-structuring the Safer Gambling Team which has led to an increase in customer interventions. "We are also introducing new technology to detect changes in customer behaviour faster so we can intervene sooner to protect customers from gambling harm. "Tabcorp will continue to work collaboratively with the VGCCC to support the important work they do to keep the community safe." Read all news by Adam Dobbin