Caption: Central Queensland trainer Ken Boody, left, with Rockhampton club stalwart Nev Jackson.
MIKE HILL tracks the multiple-winning trainers across Australia
TRAINER Ken Boody experienced the euphoria of landing a career-high ‘Magnificent Seven’ at Rockhampton last month.
He was one of a group of trainers to dominate meetings across the country.
\”I wasn\’t expecting that, \” Boody said of his success.
\”I had gone to the meeting thinking I had three good winning chances. Even then only two of the three won.
\”To land seven winners … that\’s definitely my best result ever.\”
Boody, who is based at Dalma about 40km west of Rockhampton, took 18 dogs to the mid-week meeting and arrived home several hours later with seven winners, three seconds and three thirds, including a trifecta and a quinella.
His winners were Girls And Pearls ($2.50), Won\’t Win Larson ($16), Blue Jeans Talk ($4.60), Pereira ($3), Love You Peaches ($1.80), Wink At Me ($2.25) and Molly\’s My Mum ($12).
Boody, who has been around greyhounds most of his life, said his previous best had been \’a winning treble\’, although the \’family\’ had landed a \’six\’ at Rockhampton late last year.
\”My Aunty Amber trained five winners and I had one,\” he said.
Boody, who finished fourth on the Rocky trainers premiership last year with 35 winners, said Molly\’s My Mum\’s win had been the most pleasing of the \’big seven\’.
\”I was impressed with the way she won and it was great to see her back in the winners\’ circle,\” he said.
\”She\’s had to come back from a serious leg injury and then she suffered a setback when she split some webbing.
\”It hasn\’t been easy getting her back to full fitness. I hope I can keep her going.\”
Boody and his family, including his dad Steve, moved from Mackay to their current four-acre property just over two years ago.
\”It was the old school grounds with its principal\’s house and the previous owners had converted the one-class school building into a two-bedroom cottage,\” the trainer said.
Boody said he had been working in the mines, but in April last year he decided to focus more on the greyhounds.
\”I used to have a few dogs when we lived in Mackay, but gave it away when the kids were growing up,\” he said.
Boody, now 45, said his wife Amanda had been the backbone of the operation.
\”When I was working in the mines seven/seven Amanda and Dad looked after the dogs,\” he said.
\”It\’s a real family thing with everyone helping.
\”Dad has been breeding greyhounds for many years and I\’ve always been around them.
\”When I was young we lived in Brisbane and Dad\’s brothers Uncle Glen and Uncle Mick had dogs.
\”I think I got hooked on them when I was about 10.\”
Several months ago his uncle and aunt, Mick and Amber Boody, moved up from Brisbane with a group of smart chasers to also live on the property.
But they have decided to slow down and Ken has taken over the team adding strength to his kennel.
\”They want to scale back their operation and do some travelling,\” he said.
\”They haven\’t had a decent break for some years.\”
Meanwhile, three kennels rugged up six winners at meetings during the month, while another five recorded five winners each, with the strong Victorian kennels of Mark and Lisa Delbridge doing it twice.
Yandina Creek-based trainer Travis Elson matched his parents – Bill and Cyndie, who recorded a \’big six\’ the previous month – with a half-dozen winners at a Sunday Albion Park meeting.
The strong Andrea Dailly team picked up six at Ballarat as did the McMahons – Bill (four) and Emily and Kimberley, one each – at Sale.
Mark Delbridge led in five winners at Geelong and with Lisa they shared the honours at Ballarat –Mark with three and Lisa two.
Dailly also had five at Ballarat, Amber Boody achieved the feat at Rockhampton, Anthony Bullock was on fire at Hobart and the Rasmussens – Tony (three) and Lisa (two) – dominated at Murray Bridge.
A host of trainers picked up four winners: Anthony Bullock (Launceston), Andrew Bell (Dapto), Tony Rasmussen (Murray Bridge), David Peckham (Mt Gambier), Amber Boody (Rockhampton), Damien Crudeli (Mandurah), Ron Phillips (Darwin), Tracie Price (Mt Gambier twice), Gary Fahey (Devonport), Andrea Dailly (Ballarat), Andrew Wooler (Townsville), Bill McMahon (Sale), Gary Johnson (Devonport), Chris Halse (Mandurah), Daryl Thomas (Maitland) and Mark Delbridge (Warrnambool).
Winning trebles are becoming very much the norm across the country and trainers with three winners include:
Victoria: John Barbara (Ballarat), Andrea Dailly (The Meadows twice, Warragul), Jessica Sharp (Sandown Park), Mark Delbridge (Warragul, Warrnambool), Jeff Britton (Warrnambool) and Michael Gibbons (Bendigo).
NSW: Darren Wort (Bathurst), Michael Clayton (Richmond), Graham Thurkettle (Young), Daryl Thomas (Maitland), Melanie Mabbott (Taree, The Gardens), Simon Rhodes (Dapto twice), Charmaine Roberts (Dubbo twice), Anthony Lord (Goulburn), Charlie Northfield (Casino), Michelle Lill (Richmond), James Gallaway (Grafton), Andrew Bell (Richmond) and Justin King (Richmond).
Queensland: David Plummer (Bundaberg twice), Andrew Wooler (Townsville), Robert Lound (Townsville), John La Rosa (Townsville), Kerry Hoggan (Capalaba twice), Darren Taylor (Rockhampton), Pauline Byers (Ipswich), Dallas Beckett (Rockhampton), Glen Olsen (Townsville), Darryl McGrath (Albion Park), Serena Lawrance (Ipswich) and Brad Belford (Townsville).
SA: Tony Rasmussen (Murray Bridge, Angle Park twice), Jack Trengove (Mt Gambier), Clint Trengove (Angle Park), David Peckham (Mt Gambier twice), Ben Rawlings (Gawler), Tracie Price (Mt Gambier), Steve Brook (Murray Bridge), Lewis Green (Mt Gambier twice), Tony Hinrichsen (Mt Gambier) and Troy Murray (Murray Bridge).
WA: Jamie March (Mandurah), Paul Stuart (Mandurah) and Michael Hine (Cannington twice).
Tasmania: Blake Pursell (Hobart twice).
NT: Adam Poulter (Darwin), Steele Bolton (Darwin three times) and Graeme Ferns (Darwin).
