WINNO IS ON THE MOVE: HI HO. HI HO. IT'S OFF TO GRAFTON I GO ... FOR MY 32ND GRAFTON CARNIVAL

By Darren Winningham | Wednesday, July 4, 2018

GRAFTON CUP CARNIVAL 2018:

Well it is that time of the year where WINNO packs his cameras and his warm pyjamas and heads back to the wonderful NSW – Grafton! This is my 32nd year of attending the Carnival in succession. I am sure that there are many more punters with a more distinguished record than mine – however, it is a race meeting that I love to attend as it exemplifies true Country Racing.

The annual five-day Carnival commences on Thursday 5 July with the traditional “Westlawn Finance Prelude Day” where there is free entry and you come dressed in black and gold.

Day two is Sunday 8 July with the Toyota South Grafton Cup Day where the favourites do not have a great record in the race.

Then we get into the feature races – Wednesday 11 July with the Grafton District Services Club Ramornie over 1200 metres.

This race has been won by some wonderful horses over the years. Horses like Takeover Target, Tiny’s Finito, Cangronde, Mother’s Gift, The Jackal with back to back wins in 2007 and 2008 and then more recently Howmuchdoyouloveme and Big Money trained by Rod Northam. Peter Snowden has trained three winners in the past eight years – Pinwheel (2010), Jerezena (2011) and Calanda last year.

Thursday 12 July is the running of the 2018 Grafton Cup. Who can ever forget the win of Kensei in the 1987 ridden by Larry Olsen who went on to win the Melbourne Cup in the same year. This was my first Grafton Cup meeting and I remember seeing this win and hearing after the race that he would press onto Melbourne later in the year.

Since then the Cup has always been very hotly contested. The race has been dominated by Gai Waterhouse in the recent times winning three of the last four running of the Cup. She won with Queenstown (2014), Bonfire (2015) and then again last year with Supply and Demand who was dominant with an all the way win with Josh Parr aboard.

We finish the 2018 Carnival on Sunday 15 July Maclean Cup Day. Again, this race has a habit or finding a roughie or two to win – however, it is always a great race day to finish the Carnival.

I must commend the CRJC Chief Executive Officer Michael Beattie for the work he does each year promoting and getting some good horses to the Carnival. This is a wonderful Carnival.

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WINNO will give you some certainties for the Carnival – these are sure things!

1. You must attend the Grafton District Services Club on Tuesday 10 July – Ramornie Calcutta and Grafton Cup Call of the Card – starts around 7pm.

2. You must attend the Grafton District Services Club on Wednesday 11 July – Grafton Cup Calcutta.

Oh yes, nearly forgot State of Origin 3 on the television – NSW to win three nil in a “Blue Wash”!

3. Lastly, the secret of the Carnival – “Pig Rolls”. These are BBQ leg ham rolls filled with whatever condiments you like. Last year they were $8 – great value and a true tradition of the Grafton Racing Carnival.

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I have been present for the “Grafton plunges” over the years – some have been successful and some not so successful. The punters love to grab the bookmakers money and you will see from time to time several runners streaming around the ring getting on at the best price they can to ensure the plunge money is set!

I spoke with Queensland bookmakers Con Searle and Vince Aspinall – who WINNO used to love taking money off over the years at Grafton about their experiences at Grafton.

Vince Aspinall recalls when he first attended a Grafton Carnival for the first time – 40 years ago!

“You would have to not only compete with the other 120 bookmakers, you would have to compete with the elements. Sometimes you would be in the rain and have a tarpaulin over your betting books. That was when there was a lot more money around before fixed odds.”

Aspinall goes on to recall some of the plunges.

“It was always hard to win there as something would be well backed and get under your guard”. He recalls one plunge with “Ted Cameron who backed one on course from $2.50 to $1.30. Another one was Tim Martin who used to get to the Carnival and have a good bet. They used to target the maiden races where the form was a bit undisclosed and they were very successful.”

Vince has not been to the Carnival in recent years due to other commitments that clash with the Carnival. He is hoping to make a return in 2019.

Unfortunately, with the number of corporate betting companies bookmakers are dwindling, and I hope that they can still survive at Carnivals like these.

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Con Searle tells WINNO that he has been going to Grafton since 1975 when Wave King ridden by Larry Olsen won the Cup at 7/2. Searle tells me about a fellow bookie John Picone. "He bet a punter $20,000 to $5,000 each way just as they jumped out from the barrier – it was the last bet he wrote on the race."

Searle recalls: “There were 106 bookmakers on track – they would stretch from one side of the track to the other. It was the greatest track in the world to set up a plunge.

"What would happen is that they would go from one end … and work their way in one direction to the other end taking whatever price they could get. But the funny thing was as they were finishing off their plunge another one was normally about to commence from the side of the ring they finished – so another plunge would come in a wave!”

This Grafton Carnival was massive for bookmakers in bets taken and money held.

Searle tell me: “The old NSW betting books are bigger than the QLD betting books. We could nearly fill a page per race on bets on horses in the race. We could hold some serious money. I could lay nearly every horse in the race such was the strength of the cash and money on the track.”

WINNO recalls the infamous Searle feature double board on the Ramornie and the Grafton Cup. I have been going there for 31 years and, in that time, I have only ever collected once. You rob me each year Con Searle!

I recall the year I did claim him in 2014 - Big Money into Queenstown - $120 to $10. I remind him that was the year that I had the biggest bet on a horse in my life $150 at $3 on Big Money – who was trained by Rod Northam and ridden by Robert Thompson!

Searle tells me: “I have always worked a double – an old bookmaker who taught me how to book make always used to say to me this is the best tool you will ever have.

"You know when you had no money you would turn up and put the double board up and they would line up to take the odds and get some money in the bag to start the day off.

"It was one of the best Carnivals I have ever worked at although it does not have the same atmosphere now as it used to have. That is because we have a different generation of punters and the corporates – nothing to do the venue and the quality of the races that they put on each year.

"In my time - and still today WINNO – I rate the best Carnivals as Grafton, Darwin, Birdsville and Townsville.”

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One final note – race caller Anthony Collins is back at Grafton for his third year to call the Ramornie and the Cup in 2018.

He always has emotion and provides a great call of the races over the five days – one thing for sure is that he won’t be skiting about the exploits of the Queensland Maroons in 2018 as NSW has already won the series!

With the 2018 Grafton Carnival fast approaching may I suggest if you have no plans or a week of holidays up your sleeves that you join WINNO and HRO at the Grafton track for the Carnival and experience the wonderful facilities of the Clarence River Jockey Club (CRJC) and the great racing that this Carnival brings each year!

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