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Black Type winner Morendi will resume hostilities with a First up assignment on his home track Murwillumbah on Sunday the 29^th December.

Morendi the Stable Champion for the Graham Racing team was a lucky purchase for Trainer Darren Graham who came across him at a Patinack Farm dispersal sale. The fall of the Auctioneer’s hammer saw the Onemorenomore prodigy on his way to Murwillumbah for under $10,000.  The investment proved to be a sound one with the now 7 year old Gelding to date accumulating $485,150 at 19.6% winning Strike rate.

Morendi will require all his race experience to overcome what many would consider a tough assignment in the Ballina Cup Prelude (1530m) teaming up with Ryan Plumb at 64Kg and starting from what the locals would consider Cane Road, Gate 12 of 12 in his first appearance at Murwillumbah since a disappointing 5^th over the same distance in January 2017.

The Graham Runner will have plenty of competition with a stacked field all vying to be exempt from Ballot for the 2020 Ballina Cup. The Wendy Bannerot Yard enter a proven group performer in Sadlers Lake, The reigning Murwillumbah Cup Champion Boncosta will be out to strike again for Team Bellamy and Premiership Leader Matthew Dunn saddles up Saxton Rock who as a two year old lined up in a Magic Millions Two Year Old Classic.

The Meeting will not only showcase a high quality exhibition of horse flesh however, with some of Country NSW Premier Jockeys including Ben Looker, Matt McGuren, Luke Rolls and Jasen Watkins being joined by their Brisbane Metropolitan Colleagues Robbie Fradd, Andrew Mallyon and Mark DuPlesis as well as two time Irish Apprentice Champion Oisin Orr who will be on a hit and run mission from Sydney for Chris Waller’s first outing to the scenic Murwillumbah Track.

An action packed 8 race card kicks off at 1:25pm with the feature the O’Brien Plumbing Ballina Cup Prelude setting off at 5:10pm. Full Bar, Tote and Bookmaker facilities will be in operation as well as Band Jefferson lane from 4pm.

The Tweed River Jockey Club is pleased to announce that it will be providing a free bus service to and from Murwillumbah on Melbourne Cup Day.

TRJC Chairman Bernie Quinn OAM said, ” The Tweed River Jockey Club is happy to provide this service to ensure that patrons can enjoy a day at the track and be returned to the CBD safely to continue festivities if they wish, or simply gain access to more transport options.”

Melb Cup Local Bus Timetable 2019

The TRJC has also scheduled bus runs from the Southern Gold and Tweed Coasts, Tickets are available on the Melbourne Cup Race day page.

MELBOURNE CUP DAY 2019

LEO Clapham returns to Murwillumbah tomorrow chasing a third successive win with his talented five-year-old gelding Crooked Gent.

The son of Toorak Toff has been in dynamic form, returning from a short freshener to win his past two starts at Grafton over 1100m and 1200m.

Before that he had won a Class 1 over 1200m at the Murwillumbah Cup meeting, his second win for Clapham.

Murwillumbah has been good to both Crooked Gent and Clapham.

The gelding won his maiden there back in January and the Casino trainer was also “born up there on the hill” as he pointed out when Crooked Gent won there on Cup day.

Leo’s grandfather and “all my relations” lived there.

He moved to Casino in 1960 where he “worked in the meatworks for 40 years” whilst also training horses.

He’s trained at Casino for 54 years now and received a major award from the club at a recent Beef Week Cup meeting. Leo celebrated by winning that year’s Beef Week Cup with She Tells Lies who is back in for her what is likely to be her last preparation.

Tomorrow Crooked Gent jumps from barrier eight with Jason Taylor, who has ridden him in all bar one of his 13 runs for Clapham, aboard and lumping 61.5kg in the Cool-A-Bah Cooling Services Benchmark 58 Handicap (1200m).

“He’s been a pretty good horse for us,” Leo Clapham said today.

“He’s pretty laid back.”

Which has seen him fit in well to the seven-horse stable Clapham has at the moment, allowing him to cruise through the days in his box and out in the paddock with a few roos.

Crooked Gent is also adaptable.

“He handles any type of track,” Leo Clapham said.

“Handled every one he’s been on so far for us but we’ll probably give him a few weeks off after this, give him a little bit of a let up.”

Leo also saddles up Mecum, a four-year-old black gelding son of Statue of Liberty in the fourth race of the day, the Murwillumbah Exhaust Class 1 Handicap (1100m).

“He’s not a bad little horse,” he said.

“He’s on the way up.”

Mecum has drawn barrier one with Jason Taylor also to ride.

Crooked Gent will tackle a number of Queenslanders in his sprint as well as Murwillumbah gelding Conquers All.

Angela Graham prepares Conquers All at Murwillumbah and unlike Crooked Gent the five-year-old gelding has drawn well in barrier one with in-form jockey Ben Looker to ride.

Looker is having a great season after winning the Kosciuszko on Belflyer at Randwick recently and then backing up to win with the Grafton-trained gelding again at the Sunshine Coast.

John Shelton prepares Belflyer, the Northern Rivers Horse of the Year, and the Grafton trainer also has Lucky Meteor running in tomorrow’s feature race, the Greenmount Timber and Building Supplies Open Handicap (1100m).

While Crooked Gent has won his only two start at Murwillumbah Lucky Meteor is yet to race there and has to overcome the widest barrier (10 of 10) and a big weight , 62kg (down to 60.5kg with Cejay Graham’s claim).

He is coming off a good effort at Grafton when second to Impregnable in the 1100m Jacaranda Cup and does drop 1.5kg from that outing although John Shelton isn’t overly keen about starting him.

“It’s a tricky start there, they’re turning all the time,” John Shelton said.

“As soon as they jump they are turning there. “

He will make up his mind over night whether he starts at a track that hasn’t been that kind to him over the years.

“Had a few winners there, not many though,” he said.

Shelton said Belflyer has pulled up well from his win at the Sunshine Coast last Saturday and might go to Sydney in a few weeks for a “hard race”.

The metro tracks appear to be Belflyer’s domain now with his benchmark rating so high he will be weighted out of country races.

“His next run in the country will most probably next year’s Ramornie,” he said of a gelding who ran second in the Clarence River Jockey Club’s feature sprint at the July racing Carnival in Grafton.

LOOK Out Boy returns to racing at Murwillumbah tomorrow “eying” off a successful return for his local trainer in a memorial race of some meaning for the Paul Nipperess stable.

A four-year-old grey/brown gelding son of Alert Look Out Boy has drawn barrier two with Allan Chau to ride in the $6000 Jason Birney Memorial Maiden Handicap (1530m).

Trained by Paul Nipperess at Murwillumbah the gelding has had nine starts without a win.

“He’s first up,” Paul Nipperess said today.

“He had an eye injury, got hit by a rock or a clod at Ballina. We didn’t think we’d get him back but he’s been back working well for a while. He’s fit and ready to go.”

Paul has six in work at Murwillumbah and coming off a good win at Grafton last week with Chrloride.

“He was 12-1,” Paul said.

“He was having his first start for me. It was a good win, he’s also owned by local people as well.”

Paul began his training career helping his father, the late Kevin Nipperess, out at Ballina.

“Dad had a lot of good horses,” he recalled.

“Trained for 55 years.”

Winning the Jason Birney Memorial with Look out Boy would also be a special achievement for Paul as well.

“Graham Birney rode a lot of winners for dad,” he recalled.

“I didn’t know Jason very well, he was only young when he died (tragically killed in a motorbike accident) but I have known Graham and sue for a long time.”

Paul was training at Ballina too but lack of track work riders made it a frustrating problem until “one of my mates” suggested he move to Murwillumbah.

He did and hasn’t looked back.

“I’ve got a really good girl, Courtney Moorhouse. She’s great,” he said of the young rider.

“She comes from a show riding background and rides a bit long. She listens to everything you tell her and turns up every morning too.

“I’m very happy here. The facilities are great and the club helps you in any way it can.”

Bernie Quinn is president of the Tweed River Jockey Club at Murwillumbah and would have been chuffed by those comments.

Bernie expects a big crowd tomorrow.

“Just about everything is booked out,” Bernie Quinn said.

“At one stage we

had just seven jockeys yesterday but should have eight for tomorrow.

“Going to be a good day again. A big crowd, very social.”

He said the feature race, the Jason Birney Memorial Maiden Handicap, will be a highlight.

“I didn’t know Jason who was killed in that tragic motor bike accident but his parents, Sue and Graham, have been great supporters of our club (and the Northern Rivers) for many years. We decided to put this on in memory of young Jason and of their support for our club and look forward to honouring him and them every year.”

TAMWORTH and Murwillumbah might be many kilometres apart but the two towns share a major racing day on their calendar.

Murwillumbah’s Tweed River Jockey Club and the Tamworth Jockey Club both have five-race non-TAB meetings on Melbourne Cup day.

While the Melbourne Cup is run and won at Flemington racecourse both Murwillumbah and Tamworth “frock up” for a big “social” meeting come Tuesday.

Aside from Royal Randwick there are 12 other meetings across NSW – Albury, Coffs Harbour, Dubbo, Gosford, Kembla Grange, Moruya, Muswellbrook, Nowra, Tamworth, Taree and Wentworth.

Some, like Coffs Harbour, have a gourmet buffet lunch and Albury has a Cup Luncheon.

All have Fashions On The Field and most of them have just the five races which are restricted to eight runners because of the lack of the jockeys and horses.

Muswellbrook Race Club has a seven-race TAB meeting highlighted by two $25,000 features, the 900m Bowman Sprint and the 1750m Mayors Cup. The Muswellbrook Cup used to be run on the day as well but that has now been moved to later in the year.

Kembla Grange also has an eight-race TAB meeting.

At Murwillumbah the TRJC is just about booked out with its lounge and marquees full. It has Fashions On The Field as well as Kombi Keg.

TRJC secretary manager Leanne Manning expects a crowd of between 1500-2000 for their five-race meeting also highlighted by the Jason Birney Memorial Maiden Handicap (1530m).

At Tamworth the TJC is preparing for big day with more than 3000 expected to a five-race non-TAB meeting. Race sponsors – Peel Valley Tyres, Shay Brennan Constructions, Allsopp Signs, Rapid Clean and Dutton Electrical – are part of a day where all the marquees are booked out.

The five races will also be held on the Tamworth B Grass with renovations to the course proper already started by TJC Track Manager Lindsay Bowne and his staff.

TJC general manager, Kay Jeffrey, said Tuesday’s meeting is “very much the social side of things”.

Tamworth kicks off its Melbourne Cup day with a staying test, the $6000 Peel Valley Tyres Class 2 Handicap (1900m) while the TRJC has a sprinting start its Melbourne Cup day meeting at Murwillumbah from 12.55pm with the $6000 Elders Real Estate Benchmark 50 Handicap (1010m).

TWEED River Jockey Club and Coffs Harbour Racing Club hold all of next Tuesday’s Northern Rivers Racing Association Melbourne Cup Day attention.

The two NRRA clubs have five-race non-TAB  meetings with the Murwillumbah-based Tweed River attracting 53 nominations to next week’s meeting today while Coffs Harbour received 45 nominations.

Both clubs have extended nominations on two of its five races in the hope of swelling all five races to at least eight runners apiece.

All NSW non-TAB races on Tuesday are restricted to eight runners because of the lack of horses, jockeys and stewards on the big day.

Tweed River Jockey Club secretary manager Leanne Manning said the 53 nominations will ensure a good meeting and is hopeful of a few more late nominations to shore up the two extended races.

“We’re expecting 1500-2000 people,” she said.

“That’s a nice number to handle.”

The upstairs lounge is booked as are all the marquees.

Only general admission tickets remain.

Fashions on the Field is another feature on a day where the club also stages the $6000 Jason Birney Memorial Maiden Plate (1530m).

That has attracted 10 nominations.

At Coffs Harbour Race Club Manager Tim Saladine has a similar day with five non-TAB races.

“It is more a social day for us too,” he said.

“We have fashions on the field too and a big buffet luncheon. We’ve got 300 booked into that already and hope to get 600-700.”

He said local jockey, Jasen Watkins, also continues his comeback to racing at the meeting.

“He was hurt badly at Darwin and only had his first meeting back at Casino the other day,” he said.

“He rode a double. He looks like he might have four or five rides already on Tuesday.”