the galah

O'connells just an easy target. Could he have got in the trail early.Well initially it may have looked like that,but if you have a close look at the video he would not have been able to cross without making contact with the legs of the horse inside him. Should he have dropped in behind the horse that improved outside him between the 1600m and 1400m,maybe,but that horse stopped badly so with hindsight he probably made the right decision. Could he have dropped into the trail with 1000m to run. Yes,but he is a poor driver tactically and his decision not to trail at that point is just consistent with the tactical decisions he makes in many races. No ones called for him to hand in his licence on his other poor tactical drives. The only part of his drive that i believe deserves scrutiny was with about 900m to go when it looked like he was having some sort of tourette's attack when dealing with what appeared to be a handbrake he was having trouble releasing. There's still an ongoing theme on this site of double standards ,it all depending on who the personality may be. The CJ de fillipi suspension was yet another example of that. The very same posters saying de fillipi did not team drive,are the same ones moaning about team driving from the likes of the all stars. Its hard to take some seriously when they have such double standards.

I will head to the spelling paddock with something positive. Ben hope is a very good driver.. He often pays over the odds,and while occasionally he gets it wrong,you can always see he is a thinking driver. His drive in Luella showed that on the right horse,he can rate one in front as well . From what i have seen of him,he is a very good role model both on and off the track.

Like i've said before. They changed the protocol around the way races are to be started a few months back,at the request of the licence holders,and the starter is doing exactly what he has been asked to do. No starter will ever get it perfect everytime.

I just seem to spend too much time on here.(especially when i should be watching the races,or doing the jobs the wife has for me.) I've really enjoyed contributing,enjoy reading yours and others comments,and i guess that helps get some balance on my views. But i do think when it comes to certain personalities involved in inca,some will never do anything wrong in the eyes of some. You have taken a few holidays from posting,so thats what i will do. I will keep reading them.keep up the good postings. Ah ,you flatterer. Everyone has a point of view worth reading,its interesting to know how everyone sees things.

I have no issue with your comments.

I've decided to pull the pin on commenting anymore. This site is just the same as the other one. Its all about the personalities,and this is the deciding factor in how people comment.

I must be watching a different race here as well. The start was delayed because of a couple of horses not lining up,he sent them around again,then started them with them moving forward with all horses within a length except the horse who refused to line up ,but even it was moving forward. I believe there is a deliberate attempt to undermine the starter,which also occurs in the media. People have pre conceived ideas,stuck in the past,failing to recognise the improvement in the starts that has occurred in the last 12 months. Its all an echo chamber. I'm thinking i need to spend more time doing something constructive on a sunday.

Yes the horse following jimmy cannon did not pull out,but jimmy cannon was travelling easily,the horse following was not.Thats the point. How did anderson save ground?.He went from 1 length in front of the winner to 2 lenghts behind with 200m to go. This was more than a driver making an average tactical decision. I have expressed my opinion. I have been critical of the stipes when i thought it deserved. I would have said a driver deserved a suspension on maybe a dozen times in the last 3 years. 3 of those turned out to be the subject of INCA. Thats how obvious they were.I have always said that the failure of the stipes to penalise questionable driving leads to more questionable driving. There would never have been an inca if the stipes were on top of the questionable behaviour. That was then,now we currently have a RIU who are doing the job they are their for,which is why i support them. That doesn't mean i will always agree with them.

begins 1 august

Clearly we have different opinions,and your entitled to yours. However think about this,had Anderson pulled out like any other diver would have,he would not have had to make up 2 lengths on a horse who had all the momentum up in comparison with him. It only got beaten a nose.Also think about how by not pulling out,he got boxed in for 100m at a crucial time,and only got a run because the horse following the winner up faded back. I know i'm not the only one thinking that,i have already spoken to another couple of good judges who say he should get a holiday. Like i said,no merit so attack the person. I have only ever posted twice about M Anderson's drives on here. The other was the Nelson race the subject of the inca inquiry,which i labelled the most obvious case of a horse being pulled i had seen for some time.And as to your comment about my having never driven,how many winners have you driven?I'm guessing i have driven more than you.

Seriously,i think you have watched a totally different race. With 300m to run its over racing, hard on the back of the parked horse,yet fails to pull out with 250m to when a horse moves up outside it.It was only luck that it did not end in a pocket. Clearly you have not followed jimmy cannon,as it has always been a bit one paced,although that really is not relevant,as nor is its last start performance. I defy anyone else to watch that race and then say that drive does not deserve a holiday. Typical noodlum/chief,attack the person,as no merit in what you have to say. If that was purdon ,we would never hear the end of it,but your pin up boys are the ones who have lost their licences.Nice standards

The drive on jimmy cannon in race 3 today. Failing to pull out with 250m to go certainly not seen very often.Be interesting to read the stipes report on that one. Yes i did back it,but really any normal driver would get 2 months,so we will wait and see.

Is that what you meant.I guess youv'e got to tell yourself that. Easier than facing up to the truth i suppose.

And here i am thinking it was you with the extreme bias. Where have i ever said riddled with cheats. Certainly there are some,but riddled is just your way of undermining my argument. As for your comment about House. Clearly House has upset some because of his vocal support of the enforcement of the rules which maintain integrity.

Credit to Tim Williams. He used his initiative to get around the field when the pace was slow,while others sat and waited. $14 for an all star horse that had trialed up really well was the only surprise.

While the article is sad,your questioning Smolenski's motivation is just as sad. No doubt your no fan of house as well. You,and others with similar views need to come to grips with reality.

Do you think they should have a referendum on ecstacy(mdma) as well? What about p? Most people that go to the local nightclubs are on it(mdma),so everyone tells me.

I don't mind the colour as easier to see.I see the pending bets are now available to look at.

Anyone know how to see what pending bets you have running. Only the win/place seem to be available. Is this just another basic thing they have got wrong?

I see they have changed this a bit. One positive is the 'a' has been changed. It used to look almost exactly like an "o". To some this may not be a big deal,but to me its progress.

You criticise someone for what you say is personal criticism,then you go and do exactly that yourself. If you had referred to my wifes looks as suggested in your example,i would know it was personal as i know it not to be true. But the proof you were wrong would be there for anyone to see,so i wouldn't waste my time reacting to you. If you did refer to me or my wife as a thief,then i would know you to have an ulterior motive to the lie,i would then be your enemy,and i would make a point of holding onto the contempt i had for you..Some say let it be,i say sometimes you have to embrace the hate as that is what is deserved. But back aveross spitfire,i think it has improved since Brodies has started posting. And each time it runs it adds a bit of interest to the race it is in. I say go aveross spitfire,but i'm not holding my breath.

While i don't agree with the brodsters view on aveross spitfire being retired simply because it has poor record,i think his comments express a view that some might have ,and i find them entertaining. Some might take it as a personal attack on its connections,i don't believe that to be the case. I don't see a problem in someone saying what they think,if they don't intend to make it personal. How others construe things is really up to them. Having said that i understand that making honest observations will result in negativity towards the poster,but no one should be influenced by that.

Part of the reason Mcgrath has so much support is because he would never sell anyone out. Always thought mcgrath would be the type of bloke you would want fighting alongside you in a war. I do wonder if the "i will go to the media if you(hrnz) don't back me when i appear in court'' approach has been used before. Certainly not a south island approach,but would be,or maybe has been an effective approach.

Like i said hunter,i know your a fan of hers. You say i'm bagging her. Can't i state my view on the way someone drives without someone taking offence? Manipulating someones views on something into portraying those views as being a personal attack is often the way its played by those taking offence,or those in the media. Focus on what i said,not what you make out i said.. If saying tactically a couple of drivers get it wrong a bit is enough to take offence,then those people are going to be upset a lot. Like i said hunter,you've got the wrong person. I tell you that again so you don't go undermining the wrong person.

I know it was kerryn that drove mordecai. I assumed hunter was asking about the other part of my first post where he asked me who i was referring to.,which was her sister. I prefer these sunday meetings over the fridays to bet on and to watch..It was only a couple of sundays ago that the race with horses north of somewhere,and south of somewhere had a win pool much higher than all other recent races. From what i read of the article that b lichter wrote about turnovers for the first few meetings,there did not seem much difference in a friday and sunday turnover per race. I really don't think it bothers punters/enthusiasts much whether it is high class racing,or lower class. Some punters/enthusiasts like one and just as many like the other. The novelty waning aspect of racing is just as applicable to any other sport that has returned.