Personal bests for the 2020-21 season

[Wandering Eyes]

A total of 76 trainers and drivers achieved personal bests in the 2020-21 season. 

A search of Harness Racing New Zealand records for the season show that 25 drivers had their most wins in a season, as did 51 trainers.  

As well as having their best seasons Ben Hope (40) had his first Group One victory with Muscle Mountain in the Fred Shaw Memorial New Zealand Trotting Championship, as did Benjamin Butcher (44) with Enjoy Me in the Sires’ Stakes 3YO Filllies Final, and then B D Joe at the Harness Jewels.   

Second to Blair Orange (179) in the premiership,  John Dunn had his best season in the sulky with 141 wins, including nine with Five Wise Men and seven with Sundees Son. 

Tim Williams (93), Sam Ottley (82) and Robbie Close (65) also had their best seasons as did the country’s stand-out junior driver Sarah O’Reilly (57).   

Of the trainers Robert Dunn was a runaway leader of the premiership, winning it for the second season in a row. He had a career high 124 training successes, eclipsing his previous best haul of 121 in 2016. 

Among the others to have had their best ever seasons were Arna Donnelly with 37, beating the 33 she had in 2019. Among Amber Hoffman’s best return of 23 wins was taking out the very last race at Forbury Park with Dodgethebullet. 

Woodend Beach trainers Regan Todd (43), Matt Purvis (28) and Bob Butt (19) also had their best seasons, as did the Southland-based Nathan Williamson (48), Alister Black (19) and Craig Ferguson (15). 

See below for a full list of the trainers and drivers who had their best ever seasons in 2021.

Trainers

Name	Wins
Stephen Anderson	2
Paul Andrews	2
Steve Baucke	6
Philip Beveridge	3
Alister Black	19
Lyndon Bond	11
Zachary Butcher	6
Kim Butt	4
Bob Butt	19
Tracy Cadwallader	1
Kyle Cameron	12
Terry Chmiel	12
Katie Cox	7
Mike Curry	2
Robert Davis	3
Arna Donnelly	37
Robert Dunn	124
Alan Edge	6
Chelsea Faithful	7
Craig Ferguson	15
Mark Gill	4
Joseph Gray	3
Ricky Gutsell	4
Dean Halliday	2
Steve Harding	3
Mike Heenan	9
Amber Hoffman	23
Petra Luzumova	1
Doug McCormick	4
Tracie McGrannachan	3
Laura McKay	1
John Morrison	7
Sandra Mounce	8
Maria Murrell	1
Denis O’Connell	13
Andre Poutama	10
Matt Purvis	28
Ellie Rowden	4
Jo Stevens	8
Robert Stuart	7
Jason & Megan Teaz	15
Regan Todd	43
Bruce Wallace	3
Angela Washington	1
Brent White	30
Luke Whittaker	1
Matty Williamson	8
Nathan Williamson	48
John Withell	2
Jess Young-Grant	1

 

Drivers

Name	Wins
Richard Austin	1
Benjamin Butcher	44
Ross Cameron	6
Alana Cameron	10
Jamie Campbell	4
Robbie Close	65
John Dunn	141
Crystal Hackett	2
Alicia Harrison	18
Ben Hope	40
Tate Hopkins	1
Tristan Larsen	10
Zev Meredith	8
Korbyn Newman	21
Sarah O’Reilly	57
Sam Ottley	82
Frank Phelan	4
Gemma Thornley	8
Sam Thornley	5
Olivia Thornley	6
Kerryn Tomlinson	27
Luke Whittaker	16
Sheryl Wigg	12
Cheree Wigg	9
Tim Williams	93

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