Hard yards paying off

Harness racing driver Blake Micallef has already had a memorable week in the gig after driving four winners at Wagga on Tuesday night.

The well-travelled horseman was backing up from a trip to Canberra on Monday and then followed his busy road trip from Wagga to Bathurst on Wednesday where he added to his ever-increasing tally of winners by scoring aboard the Ben Settree trained Delightful Me (Bettors Delight).

The 23-year-old is not afraid of doing the hard yards to make a name for himself in the game and it is certainly paying off as he has now recorded 170 career wins including 32 this season.

“It was a great feeling when I brought up my fourth winner on Tuesday night as it was the first time that I have achieved that score on a single program,” said Micallef.

“Going into the Wagga meeting I felt confident that I had some good each-way chances.

“But to win half the program is something special.

“Fortune was certainly on my side as most of the horses I drove gained favourable runs in transit and they were good enough to capitalise on that.

“Each year I set myself a goal of bettering my previous season win tally.

“I drove 74 winners last season so hopefully, with 32 wins under my belt so far, I am on target to achieve that goal by December 31.

“The travelling does not bother me at all.

“Living near Young is ideal as it is central to so many tracks.

“I get so much support from owners and trainers that show faith in my driving ability, which is quite humbling.

“And the grounding I have had, and the support I get from my family is no doubt the main contributor to my success.

“Everything we do is a real team effort.

“Everyone at home works hard and our horses are always fit and are good to drive.

“My partner, Mel Dwyer, is currently completing her trial drives and is very handy with a horse too.”

Micallef heads to Cowra on Sunday where he has five drives on the nine-race program, and he suggested that the Nathan Turnbull trained Punto Caliente (Race 4) was his best winning chance.

The Cowra Club’s Carnival of Cups will be run over the next two weekends with next Sunday’s Cowra Cup the highlight.

For complete race fields, click here.

by Michael Dumesny, for HRNSW