DAMIEN LANE’S MASTERY IN THE SADDLE ON DISPLAY

By Graham Potter | Saturday, January 4, 2025

Damien Lane doesn’t always get the headlines he deserves with his name often lost in media’s mass adoration of the likes of James McDonald (which is not underserved by the way), but that does not diminish the fact that Lane is right up there with the best of them in the Australian riding ranks.

Lane provides evidence of that week in and week out … nationally and internationally … but, perhaps because of the quiet manner in which he accepts victory without any of the often associated razzmatazz, he seldom stands in the spotlight.

Go back and watch the videos of his two back-to-back wins in the $500 000 The Wave (aboard Miss Jolene) and in the $1 million The Syndicate (aboard Payline) at the Sunshine Coast on Saturday and see Lane’s mastery for yourself.
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Miss Jolene ($4.20) was certainly well deserving of her win in her own right having finished second or third in her four previous starts, but a barrier draw of eleven out of eleven meant that she would need guidance from the saddle if she was to overcome that disadvantage.

Held three wide throughout the first half of the race, patience was the name of the game and Lane had that in abundance, keeping Miss Jolene racing well within herself, some six lengths back, hardly moving on her, all the way to the home turn.

Lane had kept Miss Jolene in clear galloping room, but was now cornering six wide for that privilege.

A couple of flicks of the wrist by Lane and a sure response by Miss Jolene had the daughter of Russian Revolution quickly making up ground to join a line of six horses, spread across the track, vying for the lead. Then, Lane still had to get Miss Jolene home … and his mount was a very willing partner in the task the duo faced over the final 200m.

All of those energy reserves on Miss Jolene’s part that Lane had saved in the early part of the race now kicked in with telling effect as Miss Jolene sustained her run, but the $26 outsider Encoder, racing hard up along the inside, still refused to go away … and Lane had to ride hard and push Miss Jolene’s head out on the line to earn a tough, but ultimately inch-prefect victory.
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Lane’s ride aboard Payline in The Syndicate was even better.

This time Lane did have one horse outside him in the barriers, but drawing barrier ten out of eleven hardly did Payline any favours, and, again, Lane had little option but to take his mount back all the way to second last place, then last, in the early part, a little more than eight lengths off the early leader Golden Boom.

Payline ($21) was still well back and seemingly trapped behind a wall of horses on straightening, but Lane did not take any dramatic evasive action. Instead, he placed his confidence in the horse he had under him racing up to the immediate line of horses in front of him, then angling Payline inwards where, with gathering momentum, he slipped in-between two runners.

Once through that gap, the rail run became available … courtesy of a magnificent piece of riding considering where Payline had come from and the tricky path he had negotiated.

Lane gratefully accepted the rails run, quickly moving into fifth spot coming through the 200m mark … and now Payline, relishing his task, was simply flying.

Within a matter of strides, he was up to fourth place. By the 100m mark you could make that third place … and closing.

Now, only the long-time leader Golden Boom ($3.70) and Prince of Boom ($6.50) who had been second throughout, remained in Payline’s way but, with the horse wanting to run for Lane … stretching out his neck, striving to get there … Payline now was not going to be denied.

He found the front with 50m left to run and his winning margin was 0.60 lengths.

It was a big win and a great spectacle!
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After her win in The Wave, Miss Jolene, who is trained by Kelly Schweida, is now a four-time winner with eight minor placings from twenty-one starts with $629 825 earned in prize-money.

After his win in The Syndicate, Payline, who is trained by Chris and Corey Munce, is now a five-time winner with seven minor placings from sixteen starts with $794 500 banked in prize-money.

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