Williamson works the oracle with Phil’s Gift

Oamaru trainer Phil Williamson played the magician at Forbury Park on Friday night when he returned his namesake Phil’s Gift to winning form after the 9-year-old trotter had been in the wilderness for three years.

Stable reinsman Matthew Williamson took Phil’s Gift to the front at the 1500m after starting from 40m and  the Sundon –Ilona Del gelding lasted by a neck.

 

Phil’s  Gift was having his first start from the Williamson stable after transferring from Greg and Nina Hope two months ago.

 

“Greg told us he  couldn’t do any more with the horse and Phil agreed to have one last shot with him,’’ said Kim Tapper, who races Phil’s Gift with Peter Parker and Mike Hynes.

 

Phil’s Gift won two races from the Hope stable but five minor placings  in 19 starts had been his lot over the previous three years. He was away from racing for 18 months from October, 2014 with leg issues. Phil’s Gift  had earlier won nine races for Levels trainer Murray Tapper, including his first start at Forbury Park in August, 2011.

 

There was an element of Phil Williamson having the last laugh.

 

He traded Ilona Del, the dam of Phil’s Gift, to Michael House for a service to Tinted Cloud. “We didn’t have the land to run Ilona Del at the time. It was not the greatest deal I have done,’’ Williamson recalled. Ilona Del had not long left a filly by Sundon who as Jasmyn’s Gift would win 17 wins including the NZ Trotting Free-For-All for Phil and Bev Williamson. Clive and Rona McKay then bred two foals from Ilona Del. The Speedy Summit mare failed to leave a foal the next six years before House bred Phil’s Gift, whom he named and sold for $18,000 through the premier yearling sale.

 

Tony Stratford, who shifted his training operation to Gore a week earlier, produced Pantastic for an all the way win. “I thought the timing was right to go out on my own and shift to  the Gore track. The facilities are very good,’’ said Stratford. He was previously the trainer for Macca Lodge stud at Riversdale for two and a half years. He has 15 horses in work.

 

Pantastic is raced by the  Custom Made syndicate assembled by Caine McIntyre, of Macca Lodge. Several of the young members are first time owners.

 

Jack Harrington, who has won five races with the trotter Hey Yo, broke fresh ground with he won a race for pacers with Buffy Bay.

 

Atom Hanover who was racing out of his grade, prevailed in a close finish.

 

“I put him in the race to get it off the ground,’’ said trainer Geoff Knight of the C1 pacer racing against C2 horses.

 

Temuka trainer Brent White prepared his third winner in recent weeks for Christchurch owner, Peter McDermott when Franco Hamilton overcame a second line draw. Franco Hamilton was having his second start for White after being bought recently by McDermott. Culley Backy was a winner for White and McDermott at Oamaru five days earlier. Run To Hide, a winner for the duo at Rangiora has since been sold to Australia.

 

White and reinsman Stephen McNally  were also successful with Dark Ops, who led for most of the way in the c1 trot.

 

Oamaru trainer Eion Latimer had a good night. He landed the quinella in the final race with Spirit of Chronos and Chief Kapai and earlier won  the race  for junior drivers with Mickey Jay, driven by Ineka Lee.

 

The Forbury Park club could feel aggrieved with the TAB.  Only the first race was listed in  the form guide supplied to the local (Dunedin) newspaper, the Otago Daily Times. The same guide is run in three other newspapers. The TAB got it horribly wrong by downloading a page of form from the previous Friday, December 2, instead  of the remainder of the Forbury Park fields. It was a X on the editing procedure of the ODT that the mistake was not picked up.