Chief Stipe Posted Tuesday at 06:45 PM Author Share Posted Tuesday at 06:45 PM Turf guru answers call to rescue Magic Millions day at the Gold Coast www.racenet.com.au – with Ben Dorries Evergreen Turf supremo Graeme Colless is no stranger to rescuing marquee events. In 2019, on the eve of the New Year's Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Colless and his team were parachuted in to bring the iconic venue's surface up to scratch after a series of U2 concerts in the lead up had left it in disrepair. And in 2022 they were at it again when front and centre in bringing a section of the Flemington track back from the brink following an act of vandalism during the Melbourne Cup carnival. • ‘Suspicious items' found near scene of Gold Coast track poisoning drama This week, Colless and his expert team are plying their trade on the Gold Coast in a bid to salvage Saturday's lucrative $14.5m Magic Millions meeting, following the much publicised poisoning of a section of the track surface which forced last week's meeting to be shifted to the Sunshine Coast. The damaged section of the Gold Coast track. Picture: Supplied And in the greatest endorsement yet, turf whisperer Colless, who answered an SOS call from Queensland officials at the weekend, has declared he is now "90 per cent confident" that the Gold Coast track would be fit to race on Saturday. Speaking to Racenet on Tuesday, Colless said the turf replacement had got to the point where jockeys would be able to test it in gallops on Thursday morning which will ultimately decide the future of the meeting. "Racing Queensland rang me on Friday evening and I had to get some of my staff back from holidays and fly in others from Melbourne," Colless said. • Barrier Draw: Dream turns to despair for Magic Millions favourite "There was also gear from all around Sydney that we needed to pick up, then we got up to the Gold Coast on Sunday and did an inspection. "We found some grass on the track that we are going to replace from the B-Grass onto the course proper and we have got specialised machines to do that. Mark Guest - Last 7 Days • PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW! "The machines that we use for stadiums, they cut (turf) rolls of about nine square metres and then they are all hydraulically pushed over by another machine that we have got. "All things being equal, I am giving them a 90 per cent chance of racing at the Gold Coast on Saturday." Late on Tuesday, News Corp revealed that it had become increasingly likely that the track poisoning at the Gold Coast was a deliberate act by vandals. Suspicious items, including weed spray nozzles, along with footprints near a canal which adjoins the racecourse are said to be forming part of the Police investigation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curious Posted yesterday at 01:35 AM Share Posted yesterday at 01:35 AM (edited) GC track works completed Ryan Reynolds @Reynolds_R 8:34am The affected section of the track at Gold Coast (Image: Gold Coast Turf Club) With Ben Sporle Key works on the Gold Coast Turf Club track have been completed as the clock ticks down to Saturday's feature Magic Millions Raceday. The club announced on Tuesday night that the new grass had been laid and key works completed after a significant portion of the track was damaged last week. That damage forced last Saturday's key lead-up meeting to be moved to the Sunshine Coast, allowing the club time to fix the track ahead of this weekend's $14.5m meeting. Evergreen Turf and VRC track manager Liam O'Keeffe were called in to assist to project, while Eagle Farm is on standby to host the meeting if required. Horses are set to gallop over the impacted section of track on Thursday morning with a call made shortly after on whether the meeting will proceed. Meanwhile, on Tuesday afternoon the Gold Coast Turf Club released a statement in relation to the investigation surrounding the damaged course proper. Spray nozzles, mixing equipment and footprints were found in the area were the damage occurred. Police are continuing their investigation in relation to the incident. “We’re awaiting an independent report from leading agronomist company Easton Turf, who has been up to take samples of the damaged turf, but it’s looking more and more a case of vandalism,” said GCTC Chairman Brett Cook. “We know the spray nozzles aren’t ours because they’re plastic and we use brass. “Easton Turf has seen a number of similar cases in the past and has spoken with the investigating police. “If it does turn out to be a deliberate act, which is looking increasingly likely, we’re very disappointed with a narrative that has come out suggesting it was some sort of mistake on our part.” Edited yesterday at 01:36 AM by curious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curious Posted yesterday at 01:37 AM Share Posted yesterday at 01:37 AM I suppose the question is now whether the patch is consistent enough with the rest of the track to be safe to race on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Stipe Posted yesterday at 03:01 AM Author Share Posted yesterday at 03:01 AM 1 hour ago, curious said: I suppose the question is now whether the patch is consistent enough with the rest of the track to be safe to race on. Well if that was the test then Trentham may as well get rid of the shute! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gammalite Posted 1 hour ago Share Posted 1 hour ago Gold Coast Track Tested this morning and Passed with flying colours !! Here's a few horses thundering over it no problem at all. Well done those track attendants they flew in. Bloody miracle Job.!! Hope they catch the arse-wipe that did that and pour some of his chemicals down his throat to give home the shits for a few days , 🤣. like he did to the racing Magic Millions folk. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Stipe Posted 1 hour ago Author Share Posted 1 hour ago 34 minutes ago, Gammalite said: Gold Coast Track Tested this morning and Passed with flying colours !! Here's a few horses thundering over it no problem at all. Well done those track attendants they flew in. Bloody miracle Job.!! Hope they catch the arse-wipe that did that and pour some of his chemicals down his throat to give home the shits for a few days , 🤣. like he did to the racing Magic Millions folk. From what I've read the Flemington Track Manager is one they should be following. Flemington seems to be the most consistent track in OZ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curious Posted 59 minutes ago Share Posted 59 minutes ago (edited) Gold Coast track gets tick for Millions day: ‘We could have raced today' https://www.racenet.com.au/news/gold-coast-track-gets-green-light-for-magic-millions-day-20250108 Watch the crucial track gallop that gave the course the tick of approval. By Trenton Akers 06:17pm • 09 January 2025 One of the most respected stewards in the world says the repair job at the controversial Gold Coast track worked so well, they could have raced the Magic Millions on Thursday if it was required. After almost a week of mixed messaging and uncertainty, it took less than half an hour for Kim Kelly to give $14.5m meeting the green light on Thursday morning after senior jockeys Vlad Duric, Chad Schofield, Jimmy Orman, Michael Cahill, Andrew Mallyon and Martin Harley tested the new turf. "We looked at it yesterday (Wednesday) and I was confident that if, at a pinch, the races were on today (Thursday), we could have done it," Kelly, the Queensland Racing Integrity Commission's deputy commissioner said. "The time between Wednesday and Saturday is just a bonus." While officials have managed to dodge a bullet with the track, they are facing a new potential issue, with up to 30mm of rain forecast to fall at the Gold Coast on Saturday's race day. The meeting was famously washed out in 2023 with just 14mm of rain overnight, however the new sand-based Gold Coast track is much more resilient to downpours, should they arrive. With grass guru's Evergreen Turf replacing the entire affected patch of killed off grass earlier in the week, racing officials are confident the new slab will race consistently with the rest of the course proper. "The contractors, Racing Queensland and the club have done a great job in getting the affected area back to where it is now," Kelly said. "It was all very positive. "The rain on Wednesday night could have only helped it, natural irrigation is better than any other irrigation. "I am very confident, the feedback from the riders was positive, as I expected it would be after looking at the track. "We are very happy with the outcome so far, there are no issues with the meeting on Saturday at this stage at all." The six jockeys who rode on the track on Thursday were not permitted to make public comments about their gallops earlier in the day. Additional track staff will be on hand to inspect the area at the 500m mark on Saturday after each race Edited 57 minutes ago by curious 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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