06 June 2019 | Alan Parker
When Wanneroo trainer Debbie Padberg left home on Saturday afternoon headed to Northam’s Burwood Park she was hopeful of a reasonable night having six starters across five races.
When she left Northam, Debbie had five winners and a second place getter in the truck and not only was five winners at a meeting a personal best, bettering her four winners at Central Wheatbelt on 1st May 2016, it also equaled the State Record for a female trainer.
Debbie now shares with Carol Warwick the record for training the most winners at a meeting.
Carol Warwick trained five winners at Gloucester Park on 6th June 2003 before repeating the feat a fortnight later when she again trained five winners at Gloucester Park.
Carol Warwick was the State’s leading female trainer with 487 winners until Debbie Padberg took that honour on 4th July 2016 when Bad Round became her 488th winner.
After Saturday night’s heroics Debbie Padberg has now trained 557 winners and with 298 of that tally coming in the City she is now poised to eclipse the total of 306 Perth winners trained by Carol Warwick.
For the record Debbie’s five winners on Saturday night were Miss Serena, Village Benny, Amadeo, Allwood Peacemaker and Regal Ambition. Her sixth runner Antagonistic finished a close second to Village Benny.
She won the first four races on the programme and four of her five winners were driven by Luke Edwards with Emily Suvaljko’s concession claim being used for the drive on Allwood Peacemaker.
It was also a career best night for Edwards easily surpassing his previous best of a winning double at a meeting and he has now driven 92 winners.
The win of the 2yo filly Miss Serena was particularly satisfying for Edwards as he broke the filly in after John and Debbie Padberg bought her last year at a yearling sale in Melbourne.
Edwards is stable foreman for the Padberg stable which has around 24 horses in work including a number of youngsters being educated for future racing careers.
Debbie Padberg has been a longtime supporter of harness racing in Northam and 155 or 28% of her winners have come at Burwood Park.
When the Northam Harness Racing Club holds its next meeting on June 22nd the Padberg stable will again be well represented and based on last Saturday will be worth following.
This story was originally published in the Avon Valley Advocate on Wednesday 5th June and is reprinted here with their permission
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
