A WEEKLY REVIEW

The Good

With Sydney in the doldrums recently, New Zealand highlighted in Hong Kong, primed with an Aussie influence, and Ballarat.

Under James McDonald the local champ, Romantic Warrior, notched his third Hong Kong Cup, a record, on Sunday while Ka Ling Rising tuned by our David Hayes with the assistance of Zac Purton from the NSW Northern Rivers, made it eight straight successes in the Hong Kong Sprint.

By financial comparison the $500,000 Ballarat Cup going to Berkeley Square was in the shade but not the ride on him by Jaylah Kennedy, the 23-year-old claiming apprentice who hails from Dunedin in the Shaky Isles.

Kennedy received the opportunity when the seasoned Luke Nolan was injured last week and handled the gelding, in what could have been a difficult assignment, with J-Mac efficiency.

“This was our moment to create history,” J-Mac, currently the world’s best jockey, proclaimed later with a Kiwi vibe about Romantic Warrior.

“It felt like I was lining up for the winning kick for the All Blacks”.

Romantic Warrior was $1.10 while Berkeley Square faced a more difficult task at $6 in a big field (16) from an inside gate. Being from an inside gate over 2000 metres she was presented with opportunities to pull the wrong rein. It was no sit and steer.

Kennedy divulged how she navigated to “keep the favourite three wide” but then had the touch and timing to produce Berkeley Square from midfield astutely to overcome the opposition. Kennedy ended with a stylish victory salute within the rules, savaged by Ben Allen .3 length runner-up on Lady In Pink. Allen was suspended for seven meetings and fined $2,000 being found guilty of hitting his mount 17 times, two over the legal limit, five, before the 100 metres.

The Ballarat program overwhelmed the awash Rosehill Gardens in Sydney, but Sha Tin, Hong Kong, again proved one of the world’s great race meetings.

Ka Ling Rising, a New Zealand bred by Shamexpress who stands for $8,000 at Windsor Park, Cambridge, was tardy at the start but classy where it counts.

Obviously Ka Ling Rising and Romantic Warrior are exceptionals and took me back to Sha Tin in 2000 when present to see Sunline one of the greatest New Zealanders under Greg Childs take the International Mile. Subsequently Falvelon, from Brisbane, handled by Damian Oliver, scored in the International Sprint, and the corresponding event the following year.

With Australasian assistance Honkers is now a major racing centre. And who was the first visiting jockey to impact there? Allan Middleton, from Western New South Wales.

Looking for a Middleton reference here try the Corinthian at Randwick. It was a once-a-year race for amateur riders. When Hong Kong kicked off it was for amateurs only. Now it’s the arena for the best in the world.

The Bad

Bad weather last Saturday at Rosehill Gardens took the steam out of an appalling week for racing here.

Earlier Warwick Farm on Wednesday and Friday’s Kensington offering with limited field numbers hardly stimulated betting activity.

Can the metropolitan area afford two midweeks?

The best race was Rosehill’s Petaluma due to the promise of Private Harry in a field of only six. Even before the downpour it was depleted.

The Sydney Spring Saturdays started better than the corresponding majors down south which well and truly caught up in the last two weeks, particularly Saturday at Ballarat.

Newcastle and Kembla Grange Saturday, with metropolitan status, were good but surely, we can do better than what followed at Rosehill last week.

Warwick Farm couldn’t be that bad.

The Ugly

When the ugly political dust of the Select Committee On The Proposal To Sell Rosehill settles, that contained 10 findings and five recommendations, questions should be asked.

For an in depth report I suggest Bren O’Brien’s “The Straight Up”.

I find it difficult to believe Peter V’Landys, the most powerful figure in NSW racing administration ever, did not know this ridiculous idea was being mooted, nor Racing NSW was going to be a beneficiary. V’Landys doesn’t take the pulse of racing in the state but makes it.

Again, just why is the Australian Turf Club in such a predicament that it has to consider selling the jewel in its crown? Rosehill Gardens is in better shape than Royal Randwick that hardly compares with Flemington.

Warwick Farm and Canterbury are relics compared to what they once were. Why have they become so dilapidated?

And should Racing NSW have such a healthy real estate portfolio with the Sydney racecourses withering? Is the current funding model working in the best interest of the industry?