The enthralling battle for ascendancy between the all-conquering stables of Gary Hall sen. and Greg and Skye Bond will continue at full tilt at Gloucester Park on Friday night when the heavyweights of West Australian harness racing look set to win six of the ten events.
Hall appeared certain to win the Statewide trainers’ premiership when he held a commanding lead of up to 20 winners a couple of months ago. But the Bond camp is unleashing a barnstorming finishing burst with 22 winners at seven meetings in the past 12 days.
A double with 3/1 on favourite Bungalow Bill and 25/1 outsider Millwood Faith at Gloucester Park on Tuesday evening enabled the Bonds to draw level with Hall in the trainers’ premiership, with the 2014-15 season ending on August 31.
Each training establishment has notched 211 winners for the season on tracks throughout the State. Hall has landed 158 city winners to the Bond camp’s 89.
The Bonds have 16 runners on Friday night to Hall’s ten runners. Leading the Bond charge will be Condrieu, Jungle Jewel, Our Jimmy Johnstone and Holy Grail and Bracken Ridge, talented three-year-olds who look superior to their ten rivals in the Ross North Homes Pathway Pace.
The main winning chances from the Hall stable are Norvic Nightowl, Cyamach and Ideal Alice.
“It’s nice to have a bit of rivalry between the two stables and it would be nice to win the premiership,” said Skye Bond. “We won the title three years ago when Greg and I trained in partnership for the first time. It’s not consuming us, and at the end of the day it is a matter of doing the right thing by the horses and placing them where they need to be.”
Hall sen. was philosophical when he admitted that he faced a tough task to retain the title of leading trainer. “I’ve conceded defeat,” he said. “It won’t be close. I haven’t got the numbers or horses racing on easy marks. It’s disappointing this week that Beaudiene Boaz was unable to race on Friday night because the event for three-year-olds did not hold up.
“However, I’ve got a big lead on the city trainers’ premiership and that’s the most important one for me. Stakemoney is the most important thing for my owners, and I’ve won more than $1 million this season more than any other trainer in Australia.
“It’s disappointing to be in the lead all year and face the prospect of being knocked off in the final few weeks. But that’s life and it probably signifies the changing of the guard. I’ve been the leading trainer for the past nine or ten years, certainly the leading metropolitan trainer. It’s a lot of pressure.”
The clash between Condrieu and Cyamach in the $20,500 Access Without Barriers Pace over 2130m promises to be a highlight of the ten-event program.
Condrieu, to be driven by Colin Brown, will start from the outside barrier (No. 9) in a field of nine and Mrs Bond said that the New Zealand-bred five-year-old was holding his form of four wins, three seconds and one third from eight starts in his current preparation.
“His run last week (when a close second to fast-finishing stablemate Ohoka Squire) was full of merit and the likely tactics will be to go forward at the start. The horse has done well at his past few starts when driven that way.”
Last Friday night Condrieu began speedily from barrier six and challenged unsuccessfully for the early lead in a 2130m event. He then raced without cover, outside the pacemaker Algranco Under Fire before hitting the front 470m from home and leading by two lengths at the 250m mark.
The previous week Condrieu began brilliantly from the No. 9 barrier and set the pace before winning from Soho Lennon and Cyamach (who had issued a strong challenge in the final circuit after racing in seventh position). He led from barrier five and won from Soho Lennon over 2130m a week before that.
“Cyamach will go back from barrier eight,” Hall said. “He probably can’t beat Condrieu, who has been too good for him so far.” Cyamach, who has been driven at his past two starts by Clint Hall, will be handled this week by Gary Hall jun., who has been granted a one-week’s stay of proceedings after being suspended for nine days last Friday night for having caused interference on the home turn in the first lap of a race for three-year-old fillies.
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