No stopping the apprentices in the Northern Territory
Apprentices continue to stand tall in the Northern Territory.
At the end of the Alice Springs Cup Carnival, Darwin-based apprentice Jade Hampson (8) was the leading rider after five days of action at Pioneer Park during April from local apprentice Ianish Luximon (6).
Red Centre-based apprentice Dakota-Lee Gillett (5) finished in equal third placed with Jarrod Todd, the reigning champion jockey in the Top End and Country premiership, and Stan Tsaikos, the reigning champion jockey in the Alice Springs and Provincial premiership.
Hampson, who won the Alice Springs Cup (2000m) on the Dick Leech-trained Write Your Name last Sunday, and fellow Top End apprentice Emma Lines landed winning doubles at the Darwin meeting held at Fannie Bay on Saturday.
Blasting out of the blocks when she debuted last April before picking up winners on a regular basis in Darwin and Alice Springs, Hampson has also enjoyed success in WA and SA and while representing the NT was a recent winner at Sandown in a heat of the National Apprentice Race Series.
It took the 19-year-old a while to get her groove back in the NT after spending time with the Richard and Chantelle Jolly stable in Adelaide late last year, but she is seemingly back to her best.
With six wins in the Top End and 14 wins in the Red Centre, Hampson is the NT’s leading apprentice (20).
Lines, who is just 16 years of age, made her debut in early December and is currently in a purple patch as she is now the leading apprentice in the Top End with 10 wins.
Gillett, who has won twice in Darwin, is the leading apprentice in Central Australia with 15 wins and along with fellow Alice Springs apprentice Ianish Luximon (17) sits second behind Hampson as far as achieving the most wins this season.
Lines, who rode her first ever winner at Pioneer Park two Fridays ago on Day 4 of the Alice Springs Carnival when she partnered Kevin Lamprecht’s Travanti, has 11 wins for the season.
Luximon boasts four wins in the north and 13 wins in the south, while Alice Springs’ other apprentice Lek Maloney has posted two wins at Fannie Bay and Pioneer Park after having his first ride in early October.
Lines sits in equal fourth place in the Top End premiership, while Gillett sits in equal third place in the Red Centre premiership.
Lines won the Darwin Turf Club’s feature race on Saturday’s five-event program when she guided in-form gelding El Magnificence ($1.85 fav) to its third win from his last four starts over 1200m (BM76) for her master Phil Cole.
The eight-year-old son of Magnus, a last start second behind Bel’s Banner over 1100m (BM69) on Anzac Day, settled on the fence after jumping from the outside gate in the five-horse field and trailed stablemate Sodbuster before hitting the front at the home turn.
Gary Clarke’s $2.70 hope Great Diviner (Jarrod Todd), who competed at Alice Springs last Sunday, posed a huge threat in the home straight before settling for second as El Magnificence prevailed by 2.5 lengths with Cole’s $13 chance Turnstar (Hampson) rallying late for third.
6/5/23 Darwin Race 3 Replay – El Magnificence (1st)
It was in the previous race that Lines picked up her first win when the Chris Pollard-trained gelding Brimarvi Rooboy ($2.20 fav) brained his rivals by just over seven lengths over 1300m (0-58) – it was the first time the trainer and jockey had teamed up for success.
The six-year-old son of Host, who never left the fence after exiting from gate one, shared the lead early and led narrowly at the final bend before kicking away to overcome Jason Manning’s $9 runner Miroku (Vanessa Arnott), who finished well, and Pollard’s $61 bolter Miss Epernay (Hampson), who was never far away.
Cole supported the BM76 race with four starters, while Pollard was represented by four starters in the 0-58 race.
6/5/23 Darwin Race 2 Replay – Brimarvi Rooboy (1st)
Hampson started the day well when she piloted five-year-old mare Swing With Junior ($3.90), who was returning from a minor operation, home for trainer Chloe Baxter over 1300m (0-70).
The daughter of Warhorse jumped from the inside gate and never left the fence after sharing the early lead with Clarke’s Thunder Peak (Todd) and Cole’s $2.20 favourite Soul Spirit (Lines), but by the 600m she had Soul Spirit for company before skipping away once turning for home.
Swing With Junior went on to salute by three lengths as Baxter finally celebrated her first win from seven starts since acquiring the mare, while Soul Spirit and Pollard’s $51 outsider All Hard Wood (Alice Lindsay) filled the minor placings.
6/5/23 Darwin Race 1 Replay – Swing With Junior
Hampson had to wait until the last race to get her second win when the Tayarn Halter-trained Canton Kid ($1.90 fav), a five-year-old gelding by Written Tycoon, became the third horse to win from barrier one when he snuck home over 1100m (0-64).
Having not won since last September, Canton Kid settled midfield on the fence with a group behind the leader Henestrosa (Todd) from the Clarke stable and was third turning for home before Hampson set after Henestrosa and Tom Logan’s Barragunda (Sonja Wiseman).
There was no gap when Hampson attempted to split the leaders, so she headed back to the fence before edging out the courageous Barragunda ($5.50), who ran four wide for most of the race, by a nose with Clarke’s fast-finishing $5.50 pick Global Wonder (Lindsay) just over two lengths away in third place.
6/5/23 Darwin Race 5 Replay – Canton Kid
It was in the penultimate race that Halter secured the first of her two wins when former NSW galloper Tyquendo (Paul Shiers), a four-year-old gelding by Outreach, won on debut in the NT by taking out the 1100m maiden.
Tyquendo ($2.90), with the flashy silks, jumped from the outside gate and settled behind the leaders in the five-horse field in fourth place before heading to the outside once straightening for home.
In an exciting finish where all runners were in the mix at the 200m, it was Tyquendo who finished over the top to seal a narrow victory from Logan’s $2.70 favourite Battle Class (Wiseman) and Peter Stennett’s $8.50 elect Bluffed (Todd).
Lines and Hampson, who have also fought back from injury since starting out as apprentices, shared the honours in the jockey challenge at Fannie Bay on Saturday.