Graham Fischer
GAWLER owner-trainers Daryl Reynolds and Graham Fryer each came away with a winner at Saturday’s race meeting conducted by the Gawler & Barossa Jockey Club, which saw plenty of fans in attendance.
Reynolds scored with consistent mare Galcrum, while Fryer’s winner was Call Me Dexter, and both victories had their own spot of emotion.
Galcrum was strapped by Alice Lindsay, a talented jockey, who heads to Darwin this week for their Cup carnival and race meetings.
Galcrum ($9) held off her rivals to win the Barringtonbookmaking.com Mares Benchmark 64 Handicap over 1200m, scoring by a short head from Mabel Josephine ($3.90) with Icecrusher ($2.90 favourite) a long head away third.
“I’m going to miss Alice,” Reynolds said after the win.
“She has been riding the mare (during) trackwork so I will have to find a new rider.
“Alice has been a huge help and was happy to strap the mare today.
“I gave her one final instruction – make sure you come back in the winner’s stall – and she came through.”
Galcrum’s victory took her prizemoney and bonuses past $91,000 – a wonderful return for a $3000 investment – by notching her fourth win to go with five placings from just 19 starts.
Call Me Dexter’s win in the Cornerstone Stud Benchmark 64 Handicap over 1200m was achieved after an amazing incident turning for home.
The four-year-old gelding was travelling well in third place for jockey Sairyn Fawke, but suddenly knuckled, nearly throwing the jockey out of the saddle.
Amazingly, Fawke kept his balance and picked Call Me Dexter up, then managed to get him sprint through along the rails to steal the win.
Fryer gave a cheer to his mum Joan who was having a stint in Calvary Hospital.
“Mum, I told you he would win,” he said when being interviewed by Terry McAuliffe on racing television channel Racing.Com.
A $10 chance, Call Me Dexter had just enough in hand to score a short half head win over I’m A Legend ($7) with May Be Fate ($13) three-quarters of a length away third.
Promising three-year-old filly The Natural treated her rivals to a galloping lesson with an easy all-the-way win at Gawler.
Trained by Tony & Calvin McEvoy, The Natural defied an amazing betting drift to win. In very early markets, the filly was around $2, but drifted out to $2.90 pre-race, before being friendless in betting and eventually starting a $6.
Ridden by Barend Vorster, The Natural was taken to the lead in the GBJC Thanks It Members Three-Year-Old Benchmark 66 Handicap and was never headed.
When Vorster asked the filly to extend, she dashed away from her rivals winning by three lengths from Classy Jaybee ($2.40 fav) with Renouf ($9) a length away third.