Nigel Chaplin

@DufficyRon Don't go asking the owners of Aeliana how much it cost them to scratch from the QE

To run in this year's $3m Stradbroke Hcp (run 13 June)it will cost owners the following : Nomination fee (5 May)- $1,500; First acceptance fee - $4,800 (3 June); Final acceptance fee - $19,500; = $25,800 + gst (10%) = $2,580 Total = $28,380

@J_Walter23 Anyone who wonders how this happens should go to a park and watch the spread of water when the sprinklers are on. It's anything but even. A racetrack is probably 50 times bigger. Evenly spread irrigation is a serious problem that's not taken seriously by RNSW.

I honestly thought this was a practical joke .... Sadly it isn't ..... ZERO rainfall in the last 7 days and a Good 4 track rating given out this morning #TheGreatGame

@braddavo I tend to agree, race times indicated a good track & well backed horses won the majority of the races. Fence was a touch off but most people seem to love that pattern when Randwick & Rosehill are in the true. I reckon the vitriol for Hawkesbury is really due to the camera angle.

🗣️The Hawkesbury track was far from perfect with the kickback and off fence bias but the criticism on here is a bit over the top👇 Interim times= good 4 Winners front and back Off fence bias MUCH better than fence bias Sev roughies ran well inside.

@pferrari27 @J_Walter23 Yep, pretty sure they irrigate to a minimum of a Soft 6 for all tracks that are hosting jumps

@J_Walter23 doesn't it need to be like that for jumps?

Last track tweet for the foreseeable future. I promise🤣 This one just too good ..... Warrnambool with three meetings in three days coming up. Just a little 30mm top up over the last week. Watered it in the last 24 hours. Heavy 8 already with more rain coming ... Should be an interesting surface come day 2 and 3 Hope Bloggsy handles the wet #TheGreatGame

@PeterLawrence18 Very true, it's almost impossible to design an irrigation system that distributes evenly. Eagle Farm uses sprinkles that ricochet off the rail, Hawkesbury's direct more water to the rail, even Flemington uses a boom irrigator that creates a path up the centre. Not an easy job

What a weekend for track managers. Just lurching from one debacle to another. Hawkesbury, Morphetville, Rockhampton. The worst weather leading into a meeting in the modern era is fine and sunny. You are in the hands of the loudest and most vocal trainers who pressure the curators and whose interests are diametrically opposed to punters. I can’t think of another industry in the world where these guys could possibly be expected to keep their jobs. It’s the biggest day of the year at both Rocky and Hawkesbury. 🤷‍♂️

@Racing_Previews Such a pity for the race....that's going to completely stifle the betting

South Australian Derby final field + barriers and first market. $3 favourite 17. Accidental Bid (1E) needs one to come out 🤞🏼 surely.

@betsy_com_au I've seen this happen a few times. It should have been called a no race but if steward's do that; owner's, trainers & jockeys don't receive a cent and all bets are refunded. It's a financial disaster, so steward's invent a convenient narrative and hope no one notices.

Fair start or farce? Watch the replay here and decide for yourself 👇 betsy.com.au/drums-of-war-t…

@J_Walter23 Stewards report will be interesting to find out if they got this wrong way around or punters were just thrown a dummy.

@Racing_Previews I'd guess they would have had to prove that whip strike was intentional and not accidental.

That is deadset remarkable. If Street Artist didn’t get hit with the whip to the head, there’s no doubt he finishes in front of Along The River. What more do you need to see to get a protest upheld these days?

@J_Walter23 Ballsy call, the thunderstorms last night hit the SCG but missed Randwick

When did the 3mm of Irrigation go on Randwick? Yesterday or this morning?

@Matt__Welsh_ Exactly, 10% - when would it have been any different. 3x inflation, demand continues to be high; this is not indicative of struggling owners. When yearling prices start falling then we might have something to talk about.

My 2 cents on the starting point: 1. Yearling prices up 100%+ since 2014. That’s ~3x inflation. Unsustainable. 2. Investing in punters might hurt prizemoney growth short-term… but it’s the only way to grow the pie long-term. Bigger audience = more funding = stronger industry

@J_Walter23 Massive jockey change as well

He had a long first prep. But he looks to have returned an absolute beast! Wont find many stronger midweek sprints than that #GoldenStraand

@J_Walter23 I'd suggest Kerrin leaving the fence was even more brutal

The one time in life you expect J Collett to stay to the fence when its worth 10 lengths and he comes wide #Akaysha #TheGreatGame #Brutality

@PeterLawrence18 $4m

Correct. The obsession with smashing Vic racing saw these crazy prizemoney decisions. For the QE to be worth 2.5x more than the Doncaster is a crying shame. PVL wanted the QE to dethrone the Cox Plate and one has to say he’s done a good job, but at what cost? It used to be worth half the Doncaster prizemoney.

@Nic_Ashman @Racing_Previews Definitely not soft relative to QOTT. But virtually every racing analyst would say she's a better chance (higher probability) of winning the QE than the Doncaster. As such, it was a wise decision.

Staggered at feedback suggesting this is the soft option They had 3 options and chose the one with the most prizemoney They have chosen the one that requires an unbeaten horse to go 400m further than she’s ever gone before They had a soft option called the Queen of the turf!

@RNSWStewards @newcastleraces_ Looks like No Statement got a false start and as result the whole fabric of the race has changed. Interesting one

Newcastle: Race 4 - Delay to correct weight as Stewards review the start @newcastleraces_

@J_Walter23 Yep, Nolen got 'handled' early

Lucky she had 37 on them 😜 #ShezaAlibi

@AlanCRowland Hypothetically, if Observer SP's $2.10 and Sixties $3.50, yet Sixties wins the race, would you regard this as pricing the race correctly? Hence are you trying to predict the final SP's or are you trying to predict the probability of the result?

Rated prices Australian Guiineas $2.60 Sixties $3.10 Observer $7.60 Planet Red $19 West Of Swyndon $30 Victorious Spirit $35 Romantic Encounter $60 Onavuitton $70 Officiate $90 Bingi $150 Express Class Sixties has gone to another level this prep. His rating last time was good enough to win most AGs, and I expect he's improved further. The outside barrier is not ideal. He has led before over 1400m so they can go forward if they want to. Better than getting posted. Observer was good first up and will be stronger second up. No knock. I just think Sixties is a slightly better horse. I wouldn't be surprised if Sixties runs favourite. Let's not forget Planet Red. He can win but is maybe a level behind the other two. Disclaimer: These are raw rated prices framed to 100%. They are not accurate and may vary markedly from the market. Smart-arse or disrespectful comments will get you blocked.

@braddavo Horse is unlucky yes, but that ride was a slaughter from barrier 4.

Still the unluckiest horse in Australia. How did she end up there 😢 #scripted

@AlanCRowland I can see exactly what you are coming at. It looks to be the only horse in this race that's desperate to win this race. I could foresee it turning for home 6l in front as a few of the other jocks might be hesitant to get chasing too early with all of them set for other goals.

My rated prices for Apollo Stakes: $2.30 Autumn Glow $5.00 The Instructor $10 Aeliana $16 Stefi Magneitica $16 Ceolwulf $20 Lindermann Autumn Glow is the obvious horse to beat. The value though is The Instructor. This Waterhouse/Bott horse has improved as he's matured. He had a peak rating first up when narrowly beaten with 60kgs. Second up he failed at the Gold Coast. Then he came back to Sydney and again was narrowly beaten. 4th up I think he's ready for a career peak. He's won 2/3 4th up. The only loss was in Qld where he doesn't perform to his best. They bet $26 but $17 is still a nice e/w price.