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A 60 – 1 boilover win secured the Horsham Harness Racing Club’s popular annual Noel Smith Memorial Invitation Driver’s Championship yesterday for young Victorian reinsman Jack Laugher.
Consistency was the name of the game for Laugher, securing just the one win (on the locally-trained Muckinbar Diva (Shadow Play – Muckinbar Lady (Fully Loaded), but racking up enough points with a second and two thirds in the five-race series.
He finished two points clear of Kerryn Manning with Kate Gath third with 34 points. Other drivers (in finishing order) were Jodi Quinlan (32 points); Zac Phillips (30); Anthony Butt (28); Leigh Sutton (27); Chris Alford (24); and James Herbertson (19); with Jason Lee awarded the wooden spoon award on 19 points.
Ironically, the sole victory for Laugher was on a horse trained by Horsham Harness Racing Club Treasurer Justin Lane.
Lane, who prepares a small team at his father’s property at Haven, five minutes out of Horsham, said despite Muckinbar Diva’s generous odds, he was quietly confident of her chances.
“Her previous run at Ballarat two weeks ago (when she took a sprint lane run to win) was terrific. I really couldn’t believe the odds she was at Horsham after that run, and she had trained on well since – she’d really lifted a level” Lane said.
“I’m not sure whether Jack believed me when I told him that if we land with the front group (from her barrier four draw) that they would have to be good to beat her. When she settled in behind the leader, I thought we were a really good chance.”
Laugher and Muckinbar Diva duly pinged up the sprint lane and scored by 1.2 metres from Terror the Christian (Kate Gath) and Amore Rock (Zac Phillips).
Muckinbar Diva is the fourth foal from Muckinbar Lady which was raced by the Lane family (10 wins, including one metropolitan class) as was Muckinbar Lady’s dam, Administrator.
“We haven’t really had the best of luck with Muckinbar Lady’s foals, but this one made an awesome debut at Swan Hill 12 months ago as a three-year-old when she ran third. We brought her back in November, but she was doing things wrong and galloping whereas she’d never really put a foot wrong,” Lane said.
“So we gave her a break again and sorted out some stifle issues and muscle problems and this time in she’s been terrific at both of her starts. We couldn’t be happier with her, and I think the way she went today, Jack believes she might have a bit of a future as well.”
Each of the five Invitational Driver series races on the club’s traditional Labor Day long weekend Monday were National Ratings penalty-free events, further sweetening the win for Lane.
“Another member of our Horsham committee, the President Terry Lewis also won one of the Invitational events as an owner with three-year-old Ranger Rick NZ (trained by Matthew Craven and driven by Kerryn Manning) who was having his first Australian start. So it was a good day to be a committee-member today,” Lane laughed.
The hardworking Horsham committee holds the Invitational Drivers Championship on Horsham Trotters Cup Day (this year the $30,000 Group Two event was won by Havehorsewilltravel for Andy and Kate Gath).
The Drivers’ Championship has been run since its inception as an Australasian event, with drivers from Australia and New Zealand taking part, but again this year is was a Victorian-only event due to COVID-19.
The club has also made the day an industry celebration in recent years, with the generosity of sponsors ensuring most participants left the meeting on Monday with products and gifts in tow.
“We have a fantastic committee and this event, in particular, is a lot of hard work to pull together. But participants love it and reward us every year with great nominations and great racing,” Lane said.
“Getting a win on the day as a trainer was extra special, though.”
The win gives Lane two victories from two starters for season 2022.
“I train the racehorses at my dad Kevin’s property. We do all the jogwork there and fast work in at the Horsham track or out at my good mate Aaron Dunn’s property,” Lane said.
“We love the sport – my wife Jo and I and our son Riley and daughter Morgan race all the horses in our names. We live about five minutes further out from dad at McKenzie Creek and Jo and Morgan have equestrian horses and we have our broodmares and raise our foals at home.
“We also have our old stable star National Service (Legacy of Power – Muckinbar Miss) (16 wins 2008-2016, $575K in stakes) living out his retirement in a paddock there.”
