The traditional feature of Saturday’s race meeting, the Diggers Cup, has drawn a capacity field of 14 experienced gallopers over the testing 1600 metres at Inverell.
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There are 65 starters in the six races with the first race at 1.40pm.
Last year’s winner Kingston Time returns from a spell in search of his 15th win and will do battle with likely favourite Mishani Scout, Punton Bernardini, Clipaholic and Time’s Up – who are all trained at Inverell.
Inverell jockey Daniel Edmonds and trainer Todd Payne head into Saturday’s meeting with renewed confidence after a memorable win at Grafton last week.
In a week when the headlines had been about the millions to be won at the top end of that part of life’s lottery we call racing, there was a win that barely got a mention but reinforces the fact that a little win can be just as sweet.
Sandwiched between the hype of Melbourne Cup Day and the fashions of Oaks Day, Grafton was the focus of NSW racing and a horse called Just A Dame won a modest maiden plate. The win was a feather in the cap for local trainer Todd Payne as it was his first start with the mare who had raced in Perth then travelled to Darren Weir’s Victorian stables in search of a win.
Payne can, like very few trainers rightly claim to have achieved something that Darren Weir a Victorian and national champion – could not in making Just A Dame a winner.
The real sweetener was that it was the first win in the comeback of 30-year-old jockey Daniel Edmonds. Edmonds has battled back to riding after suffering a terrible run of injuries in recent years with the Grafton win being his first since 2013.
Edmonds was battling weight issues while living and riding track work in Sydney for Gary Moore, son of the legendary George Moore, when a track work fall resulted in a badly broken leg. Then, just when a return to riding looked possible he was shoeing a horse that reacted with a two barrelled kick to Edmonds’ head.
The injury was horrific and the effect long-lasting. Aside from the bad scarring he has had to work to regain his mental and physical co-ordination. The head injury set back the leg injury recovery as the co-ordination problems meant the previously broken leg literally had to be dragged into action.
Danny is a cousin to Inverell trainer and former champion apprentice Shane Edmonds and recently moved to Inverell where he is hoping the comeback luck continues on Punton Bernardini in the cup. It may not be the Melbourne Cup and there may not be as many zeros on the cheques but a couple of wins can see hoops full of confidence again.
