Top Darwin jockey starts new season on the right note
It was no surprise to see jockey Sonja Logan, formerly Sonja Wiseman, punch the air as she returned to scale after winning the feature race at Darwin on Saturday.
She had just guided the Chris Nash-trained Ideas Man home in a high-quality race for the sprinters over 1000m (BM76) in the first meeting back at Fannie Bay since the Darwin Cup Carnival.
For the 31-year-old, who married partner and Top End trainer Tom Logan on August 19, it was a wonderful way to start the season after a tumultuous end to the 2022/23 campaign.
In late July, Logan was the victim of a horrifying assault outside her house in Darwin as she went to retrieve something from her car late at night.
A short time later, a group of 10-15 men surrounded her car and started to vandalise it before Logan was struck in the face with a large rock.
She was able to lock the car doors, but Logan was confronted when damage was caused to the front windscreen.
Thankfully, security arrived on the scene and saw the group of men run away.
Logan was taken to Royal Darwin Hospital by ambulance after suffering a wound to her nose, which was also broken, and the loss of two teeth.
After extensive treatment, Logan returned to ride over the final two days of the Darwin Carnival in early August before the wedding in Brisbane and subsequent honeymoon on the Sunshine Coast.
Apart from her wedding, Logan did end the 2022/23 season with the Alice Springs and Provincial premiership – her first ever jockeys’ title – and was second in the Top End and Country jockeys’ premiership behind Jarrod Todd.
Logan, sidelined for three months following a serious fall during the 2021 Darwin Carnival, started the 2022/23 campaign in great style before the wins began to dry up late in the season – especially in Darwin.
After landing a treble on the opening day of the Alice Springs Cup Carnival on April 8, Logan ended up winning just three more races in Darwin before the end of the season.
Hence the celebration on Saturday – the drought was over.
Ideas Man, a last second in the $135,000 Palmerston Sprint (1200m) behind Dick Leech’s Early Crow on August 5, was certainly a chance on Saturday against Tayarn Halter’s Expert Witness ($4.20), Gary Clarke’s Rising Sphere ($4.20) and Phil Cole’s Star Magnum ($5.50).
It was splendid line up considering the 2023 Carnival only ended a month ago and the fact that only 0.38 lengths separated the first three horses across the line was not unexpected.
Ideas Man, a six-year-old gelding, was the $3.30 bookmaker favourite after producing two wins, two seconds and a third over the short course prior and during the Darwin Carnival after finishing 10th in the $100,000 Pioneer Sprint (1200m) on Alice Springs Cup Day on April 30.
Star Magnum, Ideas Man, Mark Nyhan’s Cudjerie ($6.50) and Expert Witness, returning from injury after missing the big races during the Darwin Carnival, shared the early lead with Cole’s $31 outsider Damascus Moment camped in fifth place on the fence.
Star Magnum led narrowly down the side from Ideas Man and Cudjerie, while Damascus Moment and Rising Sphere started to make ground as Expert Witness began to lose touch.
Into the home straight and with 350m to go, Star Magnum held sway as Ideas Man loomed up on the outside and Damascus Moment started to make ground along the rails – Rising Sphere was winding up from the back.
Ideas Man and Star Magnum were neck and neck at the 100m before Logan’s horse edged past Wayne Davis’ mount to win by 0.22 lengths with Rising Sphere a narrow third, while Damascus Moment was only half a length away in fourth place.
Lumping 62kg and travelling four wide early came back to bite Expert Witness, who finished at the tail in the seven-horse field.
Fresh from winning the Top End and Country trainers’ premiership for the 11th straight year, Gary Clarke kicked off the new season with a winning treble on the five-race card.
Zourisky ($2.60 fav), who settled fourth, clicked into gear at the 600m before overtaking the leaders in the home straight to seal victory by a length from Motivated Miss ($4.80) and Zou Zou Kacanarkis ($7.50) over 1300m (0-58).
Hard To Excel ($4.40) skipped away to a handsome lead over 1100m (0-64) and was in good shape in the home straight before tiring in the closing to sneak home from the fast-finishing Lucky Dog ($13) and Virtuous Miss ($5.50) with only 0.61 lengths separating the trio.
To The Point ($8) was fourth, but he would have gone awfully close to winning had a gap at the 200m not closed as he was motoring home.
Change Is Coming ($1.24 fav) completed the treble when he led throughout over 1000m (Class 2) in a time of 56.32 to overcome Madame Romanov ($41) and Ruby Ruby Ruby ($5.50) by eight lengths in a four-horse field.
Mark Nyhan’s Tuffnut ($8) followed his win on Cup Day by defeating Bel Suono ($5.50) and Nokondi ($9.50) over 1200m (BM54) after settling in fifth place before getting off the fence and catching the leaders with 100m to go to win by 1.8 lengths.
Todd, fresh from taking out the Top End and Country jockeys’ premiership for a fourth straight year, and Stan Tsaikos, who had won two Alice Springs and Provincial jockey premierships on the bounce before relinquishing the title to Logan, ended the day with doubles.
Todd partnered Hard To Excel and Change Is Coming, while Tsaikos was aboard Zourisky and Tuffnut.