Trainer Curly Thomas notched his 50th training win when rising 10yr-old Grace O’Malley trotted to victory on her home track.
The mare scored her sixth career win for her 78-year-old trainer with a bold frontrunning performance on the slushy Winton surface. Thomas’ 50th win came in his 22nd season of training on his own account.
His involvement in training horses pre-dates that, back to 1964, when Thomas and the late Gil Shirley established Ascot Stud.
Shirley held the training licence for the successful breeding and training business the pair operated.
Thomas trains a team of six horses and describes them as the reason he gets out of bed in the morning.
Gil Shirley’s son, Brent, produced Saturday’s feature winner.
Dunrobin came with a big finish to collar Alfie Romeo right on the finishing line in Saturday’s graduation final.
The promising half sister to former Southland star Costa Del Magnifico made it two wins from just three starts with the victory for driver Mark Hurrell. With the Southland harness racing season set to finish, Shirley will send Dunrobin to the spelling paddock.
He had considered an Auckland campaign for the 3yr-old but decided it was not in the horse’s best long-term interests.
"She’s a very light-framed filly so she can go to the paddock and hopefully fill out and come back next season.
"She showed good speed to catch the leader; she definitely has a bit more than the rest of the family, who were more staying types," he said.
The connections of another of Saturday’s winners have also had Auckland on their mind.
I’mallaboutthebase looks a possibility to join her half sister Delight My Soul in Ray Green’s Pukekohe stable. I’mallaboutthebase finally broke her maiden at start 15 for Woodlands trainer Steve Baucke on Saturday.
Delight My Soul won her first three starts in Auckland after transferring to Green’s stable in March.
Another of Southland’s veteran trainers, Owen Lawrence, scored a win with I’m Trouble on Saturday.
Driver Rory McIlwrick sat motionless in the cart as the 3yr-old strolled to an easy victory.
"Owey had the horse absolutely in the zone. He felt like he was unbeatable coming into the straight," the reinsman said.
"He is usually quite a fractious type and he was very relaxed; before the race I thought this is either going to be a really good thing or a really bad thing.
"He definitely seems like the sort of horse that is going to handle racing in the next grade."
