Hard to believe it’s been just over a year since I stepped away from my honorary role serving our great racing industry. It was an incredible privilege and I’ll always cherish the friendships and memories. But of all the words spoken when I resigned, none meant more than those of my son William. “I’ve got my dad back.” Five simple words that stopped me in my tracks and put everything into perspective. I’ll never forget them. ❤️ Twelve months on, nothing has brought me greater joy than sharing my love of racing with William and now seeing his mates come along too. I’m deeply grateful for the love, friendship and support shown to me, Steph and my family throughout the past year. It has meant the world. The next generation of racing enthusiasts has arrived, and sharing this wonderful sport with them is something truly special. 🐎

Huge @CoxPlate Eve at Ascot Vale Hotel Moonee Ponds @SENGiddyUp @ghall27 @mcacajamez Will Hayes 🐎 with thanks to @tabcomau 🍻

Great news that Mark was discharged from hospital late last night. Jye remains at @AlfredHealth, stiff and sore but in good spirits and thankfully having escaped any serious injury. All going well, he should be discharged later this morning. The boys were treated just metres apart. The doctors, nurses and staff at the Alfred have been outstanding. We are incredibly grateful for their care and compassion. Our racing community is something special. The outpouring of love, care and support for both families has been overwhelming. A special thank you to @JPSPENCER1980, @hawkeyemanagem1, Elyse and Jess for everything you’ve done 🙏. We are all incredibly thankful both boys are okay. Our thoughts also remain with everyone connected to the beautiful Ohope Wins 💔. Congratulations to @GavinBedggood and his team on a magnificent training performance, winning the historic 150th Caulfield Cup with Kingswood. 🏆 Horses are our heroes, but the people in racing and healthcare are pretty special too. 🐎❤️ @Racing @RacingVictoria @SEN_track

Following the unfortunate fall at Caulfield today, I am with Jye at the hospital and he has asked me to communicate on his behalf. Jye and his family sincerely appreciate everyone’s concern for his welfare. He was transported to hospital by Ambulance Victoria and is in great care. He is understandably a little shaken, but at this stage there are no apparent broken bones. Jye is extremely grateful for the immediate care and support provided by the @RacingVictoria doctors and first-aid team, together with the @MelbRacingClub team. He also greatly appreciates the care and support of the Victorian Jockey Association and CEO Matthew Hyland, who has been there supporting Jye, Jess and the family throughout. Jye has sent his sincere condolences to Mr Zhang, @YulongInvest and the team at @ChrisWallerRacing following the very sad loss of Ohope Wins. His thoughts are with everyone who loved and cared for her. Thank you again to everyone who has reached out and shown their concern, he will be back in the saddle very soon 🙏. @SEN_track @Racing

Plenty of great stories came out of @MelbourneRacingClub on Guineas Day, but this was one of my favourites ❤️🐎. A part owner wins the last with Persian Spirit with @GrandSyndicates, in the moment gives me a huge bear hug. We had never met before. In his hand were the ashes of his late wife, his good luck charm. That’s racing. The Sport of Kings, but also the sport of community. A sport where us mere mortals can own, compete, celebrate and dream alongside sheikhs and billionaires. Different lives, same passion, same dream. That’s why I love this great sport. It really is for everyone. ❤️🐎

Caulfield Guineas Day! 🏇🏆 Looking forward to a fantastic day of Group 1 racing, great company and plenty of $8.50 Carlton Draught schooners🍻 🍻🍻 Enjoy the day, everyone🐎

Happy birthday to a champion jockey, absolute legend and most importantly, a great friend @blake_shinn 🎂 Hope you have a fantastic day mate. Here’s to plenty more winners and great memories ahead. Kanga 🐎

Nick @NCW717 great questions. We all agree safety is paramount, the welfare of horses and jockeys must always come first. I was on track yesterday and given my experience in my previous role, wanted to add some perspective to the discussion around the @MelbRacingClub Caulfield track. Grass “plugs” are not unusual. They are a standard and widely used method of repairing divots and damaged turf on racecourses. For context, published metropolitan racecourse standards in Australia require replacement turf plugs to be at least 150mm deep. I am advised by the track team the plugs used at Caulfield met that benchmark and the required track-repair process. A recently installed plug does not necessarily need to have fully knitted or rooted into the surrounding turf to be structurally sound. The key tests are its depth, profile, level, compaction and stability under racing load. The important question now is whether the correct technical assessment was applied yesterday. The MRC’s comprehensive review will provide clarity on exactly what occurred and what can be learned from it. Credit to the MRC team, who moved the rail out as a precaution and had the meeting back on time after Race 1. Most importantly racing continued safely and it turned into a fantastic day. Great racing, crowd and hospitality. The last 2 weeks at Flemington and Caulfield show racing is back. (0412776233 is my number for any punter, enthusiast that want’s more clarity or information always happy to provide). Kanga 🐎