THE SUNSHINE COAST NEWSPAPER COLUMN - GOLLAN RAISES THE BAR AGAIN AND NSW TAKES ANOTHER STEP FORWARD

By Graham Potter | Sunday, July 3, 2016

Graham Potter writes a weekly column for the Sunshine Coast daily. Due to demand from those having trouble accessing the paper these columns are now also published on HRO courtesy of the Sunshine Coast daily.

Trainer Tony Gollan broke his own record for the number of Brisbane Metropolitan winners in a season when Hi I’m Back saluted at Doomben on Wednesday.

It was well documented, justifiably with a fair amount of fuss, when Gollan reached seventy-nine winners last season, beating the long held record of seventy eight winners achieved by the late Bruce McLachlan way back in the 1987/88 season.

This time, as Gollan moved to seventy nine and a half winners, there was much less fanfare but the achievement was every bit as noteworthy.

To break a record is one thing. To back up and do it again is something more substantial. To reach that mark with a full month of the season left to run is really quite remarkable.

With Gollan being a hard marker there will be disappointments in there for the stable somewhere … its limited Group 1 opportunities, its lack of significant firepower during their home carnival.

It should be remembered however that Gollan is a Brisbane based trainer and the fact that the sunshine state is trailing in terms of the prizemoney available to participants makes it difficult for Gollan, and all other local trainers, to attract big buyers of better quality horses when those buyers can garner better returns elsewhere.

It will be interesting to see just how much further Gollan can stretch the new record out to by the end of the month.

Whatever that final figure is Gollan is not only raising the level for others to chase, he is raising the bar for himself. He did that last season and cleared the new height with room to spare.

Next season will be a new challenge. For now though, all plaudits are due to the Gollan team for their ongoing success.

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The troubling discrepancy between prizemoney on offer from state to state was again highlighted when prizemoney increases and decreased cost to owners initiatives were confirmed by Racing New South Wales on July 1.

Prizemoney for provincial meetings increases to $27 000 per race. Prizemoney for country TAB meetings increases to $20 000 per race. A series of Country Showcase meetings will see a minimum of $30 000 per race … while, on another tack, the Australian Turf Club has announced that it will eliminate nomination and acceptance fees for its Listed races from August 1.

All of that translates into big incentives and big savings for the racing participant in New South Wales.

Peter V’landys, Racing NSW’s CEO has gone on record as saying, “These increases would not have been possible without the Baird Government’s reduction in State wagering taxes to bring us (NSW) in line with Victoria over the next five years.”

But that isn’t the end game.

Queensland actually has a lower wagering tax than both New South Wales and Victoria, but the financial crunch starts and ends with turnover.

Achieving a sustainable turnover is the prime goal in racing that has to be worked towards … by all major players.

So perhaps the more telling message to come out of V’Landys’ explanation is the story, not about tax cuts, but about a government and the racing industry working together for mutual benefit and the common good.

Now I wonder who could learn from that!

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