Hat-tricks for duo at Gunnedah race meet

Horse trainer Wayne Brown and jockey Aaron Bullock had three wins each among the seven races at Monday’s race meet at the Gunnedah-based Riverside Racecourse.

Brown, of Tamworth, had his success in the first, second and fifth races while Bullock, who was raised in Tumut before moving to Newcastle, triumphed in the fourth, sixth and seventh races.

The final three races were won by the favourite, while races two and five were the tightest with regard to the margin between the first and second placegetters.

The track was rated a Soft 5 for the first three races, before being upgraded to a Good 4.

In the opening race which was 1250m, the Brown-trained and Kody Nestor-ridden Takeover Lad won by 1.4 lengths in a field of six after being the fourth favourite.

Race two was 2150m, with the Brown-trained and Izzy Neale-ridden Cascade Mountain winning by 0.4 of a length in a field of seven after being the third favourite.

The biggest surprise was in race three as the seventh favourite won in a field of nine while the distance was 1000m.

Trained by Nikki Hodgson and ridden by Braith Nock, Crusader Razor was in last place for a while before winning by a length.

The next two races were 1400m, with the Bullock-ridden and Kris Lees-trained Oakfield Mercury winning the first of them by 0.8 of a length in a field of 11.

The Brown-trained and Mikayla Weir-ridden Raymond’s Reward won the second of them by a mere 0.4 of a length in a field of 14.

The final two races belonged to Bullock, while the distances were 1000m and 1250m.

Trained by P&L Messara and J Gavranich, Lady Olenna won the penultimate race by 1.1 lengths in a field of 12.

Greg Hickman was the winning trainer in the final race as Tigers Roar won by 0.7 of a length in a field of 11.

Although none of the Gunnedah trainers had a win, the Sally Torrens-trained Magic Sorcerer was the runner-up in race four.

Gunnedah Jockey Club president Mark Wilkinson said a competitive day of racing was enjoyed, with beautiful weather and plenty of runners.

Wilkinson said highlights were Brown’s and Bullock’s trebles, as it was a career fourth treble for Brown while Bullock completed his treble on a horse trained by Hickman who had begun his racing career in Gunnedah.

Wilkinson said the track was presented in excellent condition, which was a credit to ground manager Paul Walsh.

“Greg Hickman was quoted as saying that he had never seen the course look so good; a comment echoed by many of the other jockeys and trainers,” Wilkinson said.