Gary Harley – Wrap – 03.05.25
Kris Lees trained his 100th winner for the current season when Great Britain bred mare Golden Smile led all the way to win the opening event the 1890 metre Supagas Maiden Plate at Saturdays Newcastle jockey Club race meeting. Andrew Gibbons, who has ridden more winners for Lees in his 22-year full time training career rode Golden Smile and it was a smart tactical ride on the heavy track. The 5-year-old for the first time in her seven-start career was taken to the lead from the outset and was never headed with the winning margin 3.17 lengths.
The Lees-Gibbons combination completed a winning double for the day when 4-year-old mare First Person again displayed her liking for a heavy track when an all the way winner of the 1250-meter Pitcher Partners Newcastle & Hunter Benchmark 68 Handicap. The mare bred and raced by Scone’s Cressfield Stud won the race by a head. Gibbons has ridden 474 winners for the Lees stable.
Paul Snowden worked alongside his father Peter, a Newcastle-Hunter Hall Of Famer before moving to Port Macquarie some months back. On Saturday he trained his first winner since resuming his career as a solo trainer. Lunaite a Deep Field filly was Snowden’s first runner when second at Wyong on April 17 and on Saturday the filly was ultra impressive in winning the 1250 metre Ausure Hospitality Fillies & Mares Maiden Plate by 4.35 lengths. Newgate boss Henry Field owns the promising filly.
Paul Perrys veteran 9-year-old General Soho again displayed his liking for his home track with a narrow but gutsy win carrying 61 kilograms in the 1890 metre Impact Building Benchmark 64 Handicap. It was General Soho’s fourth win from eight starts at Newcastle and his fourth win on a rain affected track. From fifty-six starts the gelding has accumulated more than $387,000 in prize money. Aaron Bullock rode the tough campaigner and carried him over the line in a close finish.
Another Newcastle trained winner at the meeting was the David Atkins trained Scholl Deep in the 1500 metre Bidfood Newcastle Benchmark 64 Handicap. The mare put the writing on the wall with a close placing on the track last start on April 12. On Saturday the mare relished the heavy track and after leading into the straight she won by 1.5 lengths.
Warwick Farm trainer Matthew Smith, who also has a magnificent property at Luskintyre in the Lower Hunter Valley is a great supporter of Newcastle racing and he trained a winner which had not been placed in a five-start career. Millie De Lune had raced at Sale, Benalla and New South Wales tracks in the past but on Saturday the 3-year-old filly won the 1500 metre Tooheys New Plate Super Maiden Handicap by 4.12 lengths. She obviously loves a heavy track.
While Gai Waterhouse was living it up at the Kentucky Derby, Chiba, a 3-year-old colt she trains with Adrian Bott won the 1250 metre Bottlemart Maiden Plate.
The Newcastle Jockey Club next race meeting is on Tuesday May 20.