A VALUABLE, LONG ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIP COMES UP TRUMPS IN THE EYE LINER

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, June 20, 2023

A driving two-horse finish featuring Coolmore and Godolphin runners … that is a description of a race that could have taken place anywhere around the world but, in this particular instance, it was all about the battle between the Coolmore owned Lady Of Honour and Gravina from the Royal Blue army in the Eye Liner Stakes at Ipswich … with the two runners and riders producing a pulsating, stride for stride battle for supremacy which eventually went the way of Lady Of Honour by the narrowest of margins.

But the back story behind the win of the Ben and JD Hayes trained Lady Of Honour is arguably far more interesting than the ‘same old’ story of two racing global empires going head to head … and it is a story that goes to prove that old, long established, mutually respected relationships can be worth their weight in gold.

Andrew Mallyon, who guided, urged and helped propel Lady Of Honour to victory, has just such a relationship with the Hayes family … one that dates back many years … way back.

“Going right back, my grandfather was a stable rider for Colin Hayes,” explained Mallyon. “That’s where my parents met. They were both trackwork riders for Colin Hayes. My uncle Michael was apprenticed to Colin Hayes … so, my family has had a connection to the Hayes family going back decades.

‘When I was sixteen, I was apprenticed. Initially I started with Tony McEvoy, but when David Hayes came back from Hong Kong, I was David’s apprentice. That must have been about 2006, I think. It was a while ago.

“I rode for David throughout my apprenticeship and, as a senior rider, I was always linked to Lindsay Park.”

In late 2019, Mallyon made the move to Queensland, but the distance between them did not diminish the Mallyon-Hayes connection.

“I’ve always kept that connection even though I left Victoria,” continued Mallyon. “When they have horses up here, they are always trying find me a ride. It’s obviously great to have a good relationship like that.

“I’ve had a bit of luck with Ben and JD before. I actually rode their first winner as a training partnership on Zayydani in the Listed Tattersalls Gold Crown at Eagle Farm during the 2021 Queensland Carnival … on Tatts Tiara Day two years ago … a stakes race, and then we did it again on Saturday with Lady Of Honour.

“It was good to get that result for them because they have been so good to me over the years.

“I got the phone call for the ride about a week before, when the noms came out. They were after a light-weight rider. I was available and able to ride at the 54kg, so that’s how my Eye Liner ride came about.

“Thankfully, even though we drew an awful gate (sixteen out of sixteen over a 1350m trip), it was one of those years where there wasn’t a great deal of pressure for an Eye Liner. Most of the ones I have seen, in the past, there has been a lot of pressure up front.

“This year there didn’t seem to be lot, apart from a couple of horses drawn right along the inside and the one that drew directly to my inside.

“She (Lady Of Honour) can be quite aggressive, so I had a gameplan where I wanted to make sure she began well … and then just let use her own speed without giving her a signal to go forward.

“I was able to use that horse who drew directly inside me to cart me across, and she was pretty much able to come across with just my hands on her neck.

“She came over under her own steam and that just made it all that much easier when we got across and I asked her to come back and sit on the leader’s girth. She dropped the bit straight away. She relaxed beautifully. The boys had tinkered with a couple of gear changes … a shadow roll and things like that … and I thought that worked a treat.

“From that point onwards, I just didn’t spend any petrol. That afforded me the opportunity to be able to go a touch earlier. She is a big horse … a big striding horse … and, around those tight bends at Ipswich, I wanted to get on my bike and have them chasing me.

“I think the fact that I was able to skip away getting to the home turn was probably the difference. That probably made it that tad more difficult for Gravina to pick me up.

“It obviously got extremely close, but I do think my sneaking away early made the difference.

“I thought Lady Of Honour was incredibly gallant … doing the donkey work from the outside gate and being the first one turning for home. She was brave down the straight and did everything to help herself to win that race. She was obviously prepared spot-on by Ben and JD, which made my job a lot easier.”

The Eye Liner winner has been nominated for the Group 1 Tatts Tiara on Saturday … the Hayes stable also nominating Excelida for the final Group 1 of the season … so The Mallyon-Hayes storybook might well be set to add another chapter to its long history before the conclusion of the Queensland Winter Carnival.

Tatts Tiara Day, remember, provided the setting for the first win for the Ben and JD Hayes training partnership with Mallyon doing the honours in the saddle. Could it again provide the backdrop for a second significant win for this trainer / rider combination?

“I started the Carnival quite well winning the Bright Shadow,” added Mallyon, “but it is always tough when the Sydney and Melbourne jockeys come up for the bulk of the Carnival and rides get a bit scarce, so it was good to land another feature race winner last Saturday and hopefully we can keep it going this Saturday.”

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