CONTINUING EAGLE FARM DRAMA IS JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG. THINGS SIMPLY CANNOT CARRY ON THIS WAY

By Graham Potter | Monday, December 18, 2017

Whatever you may think of the on-going Eagle Farm track situation the bottom line is the whole, sorry episode is symptomatic of all that is wrong with Queensland racing.

In terms of outcome the track rebuilding has been so badly managed on so many levels it is mind blowing.

Those in charge had several attempts at getting it right. They failed. They called in consultants. Recommendations were made. A timetable allocated ... but, by and large, the same authority groups who had failed to deliver before were once again charged with following through on the recommendations.

So there can be no surprise that Eagle Farm is still, in racing parlance, finishing ‘nowhere’. If the same people take on the same assignment why would you expect to get a different result?

The tragedy is that, in general, stakeholders have become so numbed to management failings that most have simply joined the ‘long suffering’ queue with little more than murmurs uttered in private. They are almost past caring.

Confidence lost can take years to regain so racing is the big loser at this time when it really needs to be firing on all cylinders.

I have long maintained that if racing authorities were just open and honest with stakeholders and enthusiasts and take away the ‘spin’, whatever the difficulties, everybody would be happy to roll up their sleeves, tuck their heads in and push the same scrum.

But that is if they are open and honest!

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WHEN WILL THEY EVER LEARN?

Racing authorities in Queensland have a history of trumpeting the wonderment of projects before they have been tried and tested.

In spite of finishing on the wrong side of a black and blue beating in this regard on more than one occasion ... in a wide ranging period from the cushion track launch to the latest Eagle Farm debacle ... in Racing Queensland’s latest press release they continue to talk about Eagle Farm as a track that they will return ‘to its rightful place as Queensland’s premier race track’ and ‘steps undertaken will see Eagle Farm again become one of the best racing surfaces in Australia.”

We certainly all hope that will be the case, but with a history of making premature calls and ending up with mud on their face you would think that a more cautionary approach would be adopted.

Also they should know by now that punters can’t be fooled.

Eagle Farm, as a track holding race meetings, does not exist at the moment. It won’t for a long time and only then, when it kicks into play and after several months of racing, will we have any indication of what the future might hold.

If anything had been learnt from the past you would not go there.

If anything had been learnt from the past!

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WHERE DOESTHE BUCK STOP?

Racing authorities don’t like it when people play the blame game and I acknowledge that is only a worthwhile exercise when it serves a real purpose ... ie when it ultimately leads to some action which improves the situation.

That said, one question does need to be asked and answered.

Where does the buck stop in the current Eagle Farm saga?

While there have been a myriad of players in this game ... and, at times, plenty of finger pointing by those who say they don’t like to play that game and an often very vocal ‘it wasn’t me’ response ... the buck must stop at somebody’s desk if anybody is to believe that the situation is even remotely under some reasonable direction.

The alternative is chaos and a danger of going past the point of no return.

That is why the captain, or captains, of the ship need to stand up NOW and show real leadership, caring and commitment to the greater cause of Queensland racing than has been evident in recent years. If they can’t do that, for whatever reason, there is always the ‘honourable’ way out.

As I stated in the opening, whatever you may think of the on-going Eagle Farm track situation the bottom line is the whole, sorry episode is symptomatic of all that is wrong with Queensland racing.

The waste of time, the waste of money, the draining of morale on many fronts and more ... and it is the local industry and its participants, who make it all possible in the first place, who suffer the cost.

So it’s not just about when Eagle Farm resumes racing. It is about the here and now and the need to understand and accept that, whatever it takes, things simply cannot carry on this way.