As one 10-year-old drew the curtain on his racing career at Alice Springs on Sunday, another – the veteran mare Roughly – gave a clear sign that retirement isn’t a consideration at this stage.
The Russell Bell-trained Doon Buggy finally called it a day when he finished fifth in his 91st career start in a race that was in fact named in his honour – the Enjoy Retirement Doon Buggy Benchmark 54 Handicap (1400m).
The Husson gelding, who debuted in Alice Springs in March 2015, had 76 starts at Pioneer Park (11-8-11) and all of his 11 career wins were achieved in the Red Centre.
Doon Buggy, who also had nine starts in Victoria, five starts in Western Australia and one start in Darwin, had only just returned from his WA campaign before finishing behind Sheila Arnold’s Qualis (Casey Hunter) on Sunday with former Darwin-based jockey Phillip Crich on board.
Crich is now based at Murray Bridge in South Australia and was in Alice Springs after a recent riding stint in Darwin and Kununurra in WA.
Roughly, a 10-year-old mare, then took centre stage with victory against open company in the Ladbrokes Split Multi Handicap (1400m) – the first time she had ever raced beyond 1300m.
A winner of the prestigious Queen Of The Desert (1200m) for the fillies and mares during the Alice Springs Cup Carnival in 2020, the daughter of Kaphero is now under the guidance of Central Australian trainer Leah Walling-Denton.
Roughly won on debut in a Bendigo maiden over 1000m in March 2016 and had a further two starts for the Leon & Troy Corstens stable before transferring to the stable of Michael Hickmott, a prominent trainer in South Australia these days, in July 2016 when he was originally based in Darwin.
The mare was a first-up fifth at Fannie Bay and then posted two wins in the Top End before Hickmott sent her to Mildura and Adelaide.
In June 2017, Roughly returned to the Northern Territory and never left.
Before ending up with Walling-Denton she spent time with fellow Alice Springs trainers Paul Gardner and Carly Cook, as well as Darwin trainer Phil Cole.
Before Sunday, Roughly had made 26 appearances at Alice Springs, 15 appearances at Darwin and one appearance at Katherine since returning to the NT for nine wins – seven at Pioneer Park and one each at Fannie Bay and Katherine.
Her record stood at 7-4-4 in the Red Centre and her overall career record stood at 51: 12-7-6, so after proving herself as a sprinter making the step up to 1400m came with an element of risk.
Roughly, who had a long break where she didn’t race at all from September 2020 until May 2022, could not have been more emphatic on the weekend when she led from start to finish in the six-horse field to overcome more established 1400m runners by almost three lengths.
With talented Darwin-based jockey Sonja Wiseman in the saddle, Roughly ($2.70) beat Leanne Gillett’s $4 hope That’s Justified (Stan Tsaikos), who lumped 62.5kg, and Carroll Hunter’s $16 veteran Exonerate (Paul Denton) across the line.
Alice Springs R5 replay | September 25, 2022 | Roughly (1st)
Walling-Denton, the daughter of longtime NT jockey Paul Denton, secured the services of Roughly after she won two races in July and August for Phil Cole before the Top End trainer took a team of horses to Queensland.
“Paul Gardner, his son Jeremy owns her, asked me if I was happy to take her on,” she said.
“Of course, why wouldn’t you be – she was going pretty well.
“She’s a pretty nice mare, very mighty mare.”
A first-up second behind Bar Gem in open company over 1100m on August 20 for the Walling-Denton yard was followed by a narrow fourth in a blanket finish behind Sedona over 1200m (BM76) on September 11.
Naturally, Walling-Denton was pleased with the win on Sunday, but there was a reason Roughly made the step up to 1400m and the trainer’s strategy certainly paid dividends.
“Her form had been very good and every run she has pulled up so good,” she said.
“For a 10-year-old mare that’s pretty extraordinary, but she’s very happy.
“Personally, I thought last start when she ran fourth she probably could have actually won that, but that’s racing – things go that way.
“She pulled up a treat and she’s just going to the line strong.
“I was a bit skeptical about the 1400m, but just the way she has been racing I thought she could do it.
“We were lucky it was a small field for the 1400m, so I thought it was definitely worth a crack where she’s at and as it turned out she had a good run and she’s pulled up well from it.
“Sonja (Wiseman) came back and she said that she was really surprised Roughly won so easily – she could go a mile, but we’ll just see how it goes.”
And according to Walling-Denton there was definitely a game plan on Sunday.
“Roughly can race up there on the pace – I was just a bit worried if some of the others went a bit harder,” she said.
“I said to Sonja that if they do just sit off them, be handy, but as it turned out she ended up in front and she controlled the tempo and she enjoyed it – she loved it, she let down beautifully, she knows her job.
“There’s a Benchmark 76 over 1100m at the next meeting on Saturday week, so we’ll just give her a bit of a freshener and have a go at that.”
Walling-Denton has been training for about six years and is enjoying it as much as ever.
“I’ve got four poking around in work,” she said.
“Got a couple of others, one spelling and a couple others coming up.
“I like a small stable – I think the horses like it to.
“You get to spend a bit more extra time with them.
“When Roughly and stablemate Hard Work Rewards came in they settled in so well, I think that was a big help.
“The transition was good – it was like they were meant to be here.
“They just really love the atmosphere and the way we work, so yeah, they’re all pretty happy – it’s good.”
And of course, as a trainer you have your ups and downs.
“Well, I learned the hard way for the first couple of years after getting my license,” Walling-Denton said.
“I made a big mistake when I started – I went and got my license and went and got two two-year-olds.
“One of them ended up no good, he was a little brat too, and the other one I had, he was a grass horse.
“Then I picked up a tried horse in Merveille – he was my first winner and that was in Darwin – I had some fun with him.
“A lot of horses I’ve got are problem horses or people just don’t want to deal with them anymore or they’ve had enough and they move them on.
“I pick them up and try my best – settle them down a bit and work on them.”
Speaking of 10-year-olds making an impact in the Red Centre, it’s hard not to forget the former Mick Whittle-trained gelding Granzig winning the 2012 Alice Springs Cup (2000m) as a $21 hope after jumping from gate 11.
That’s after the son of Grand Lodge won the Alice Springs Turf Club’s biggest race for the first time for Whittle’s daughter Lisa, arguably the premier trainer in the Red Centre, in 2010 as a $6.50 chance where he also jumped from gate 11.
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