By Graeme White
There is no stopping the winning run of trainer Scott Collings who finished with a perfect three winners at Gundagai on Friday and will attempt to snare one more on the second day of the carnival.
Collings could do no wrong winning the opening two races and the final event and will rely solely on Garratt Road on Saturday in the XXXX Gold Class 1 & Maiden (1800m).
The former jockey reflected on his career best performance ahead of potentially winning again with Garratt Road.
“It’s the biggest thing I have done in racing getting three winners from just three starters,” he said.
“I have had a double and had two winners from two starters at Queanbeyan one time, but this is my first treble.”
Collings won with Extravagent Lad (Matthew Cahill), while apprentice jockey Amy McLucas guided London Gal and Bombdiggity to victory.
Cahill will ride Garratt Road who was a last start winner at Albury when racing in the same grade as he will on Saturday.
Starting at big odds of $15 that day, Garratt Road has been part of Colling’s best winning strike-rate as a trainer.
He has prepared five winners from his past nine starters which includes the talented Ten Bells in Sydney.
Collings still rides all of his own track work at Goulburn and believes this is an advantage.
“You know exactly what the horses are doing so it gives you a bit more confidence if one of the horses is going pretty well,” he said.
“It was a great day (Friday), but Saturday is another day and you just have to see how you go.”
Collings shared training honours on Friday with Nick Olive who won his first Snake Gully Cup with Ready To Humble.
Collings is yet to confirm a start for Garratt Road as he feels the heavy tracks conditions may not be best suited to the four-year-old gelding.
“The grade of race he is in isn’t normally too hard, but the wet track is the worry,” he said.
The 46-year-old has found his niche training the second time around after having some stints as a foreman and also in a training partnership.
He has been training for eight years and rode for 14 years as a jockey outriding his country claim allowance as an apprentice.
Collings feels having a better class of horse for some “nice clients” has allowed him to win more than his share of races in recent times.
“I have 17 horses in work and some really nice ones which allows you to win better class races,” he said.
Meanwhile, McLucas will have five rides on Saturday after winning two of the feature races on Friday.
She captured the Heat of the Rising Stars on London Gal and also the feature sprint on Bombdiggity.
McLucas will ride Departing Bullet in the Hair Of The Dog Cup (1600m), while her other best hope is last start Goulburn winner Bella Broadway.