Barbara Joseph and Paul Jones are rejoicing following a fruitful weekend which delivered three winners from as many runners in widespread locations.
Photo by Racing and Sports
Joseph was ecstatic with the reversal in luck for their stable-runners from the Thursday and Friday meetings at Albury where they failed to get a winner from nine runners.
“We had a bit of a disappointing time out at Albury where we ran a couple of seconds and just couldn't get a winner, and then we go to Melbourne and win, and also Goulburn and Wellington,” said Joseph.
The Canberra based training partnership's best win came in the Charter Keck Cramer Plate at Caulfield (1100m) when Delabombell won by a ¾-length to the odds-on favourite Miss Octopussy.
Joseph commended the efforts of jockey Andrew Stead who rode the five-year-old from the widest gate and powered home over the last 250-metres to salute the judge at the generous odds of $10.
“That Andrew Stead rides her very well. We knew that he could be patient and sit back,” she said.
“I think he is a very underrated and capable jockey. He has now had three rides on her for three wins.
“The mare is in great form and great order. We thought she had a really good chance and couldn't believe she was at 10-to-one.”
After starting her campaign off with two average runs at Canterbury, Delabombell has since won three of her past four efforts with Joseph attributing her success to alterations in her training regime and spacing out her runs a little more.
“She's just getting better with age and has the will to win which is the best part about her,” she said.
Joseph and Jones' other two winners over the weekend came at Goulburn and Wellington when Nriangi and Direct Debit won their respective races.
Both gallopers had apprentice hoop Billy Owen engaged to ride them with Joseph praising the way the youngster rated the stablemates.
“I must put most of the credit down to the jockey Billy Owen who has ridden fantastically for someone who has had a lot of injuries,” she said.
“He's just been riding like a senior jockey since coming back.”
A majority of Direct Debit's owners live in the western NSW country town of Wellington, and have been hoping for a winner on their own doorstep for a couple of months.
“He has some owners from out there, and in early January they said to me, 'is there any chance you can get him to come to Wellington and win a race',” Joseph said.
“We said we'll set him up for one and luckily for them they got the win on Saturday.”
Four-year-old Nriangi followed up a strong maiden win two starts back at Orange with a win in Class 1 company at Goulburn on Sunday.
Joseph said they intend on continuing to race him in the country and suggested to keep an eye out for the gelding who she believes has plenty of ability.
