Anyone who’s been on the fringe of the Sydney racing scene for three or four decades would have given Mosht Up a cheer when the mare scrambled home for trainer Stephen “Beaver” Schofield at Newcastle on Saturday.

“He’s the last horse I would have expected to do something like that,” said Jess Taylor as she reflected on the bizarre accident that will keep her out of the saddle until the middle of September.

Two things stood out in the BM 64 at Newcastle on Saturday. Firstly the winner Salina Dreaming is obviously better than average judging on her dominant front running display, and the sharp ‘kick’ she produced approaching the 200m.

Steve caught up with Corey Brown just three months after his horror fall in the Queensland Derby. The champion jockey sustained a cracked sternum, a punctured lung and required major surgery to repair an unstable fracture to the T7 vertabra.

A few weeks ago photographer Steve Hart drove to the beautiful NSW Mid North Coast to catch up with successful trainer Terry Evans.

Last year Steve Hart spoke to the winningest jockey in Australian racing history, Robert Thompson. I loved the interview and unashamedly plagiarised it for my website.

Steve Hart caught up with former stud manager John Vincent who retired a few years ago, after a fascinating career in England and Australia. John gained valuable experience in his native England before migrating to Australia.

Andrew Gibbons’ hard work has paid off handsomely in recent years. In the 2016/17 season he won 79 races in NSW, another 65 in 2017/18, and he’s currently chasing Greg Ryan with 67 winners in the state.

Stealing somebody else’s creation is not usually my caper, but I cant help myself with this interview. Steve catches up with two former brilliant jockeys who have one significant thing in common. I will let Steve tell the story.

Great to sit alongside Clarry Conners at a Smithfield RSL “Men Of League” fundraising luncheon last week. The champion trainer told me two things of interest over lunch.

You’d be battling to find a NSW punter who hasn’t heard a Gary Kliese “mounting yard mail segment”, on Sky Thoroughbred Central, or his selections for Northern Rivers meetings on Sky Racing Radio.

Great to see Hawkesbury training team Tara and Philippe Vigouroux win with Lettre D’Amour at Kembla last week. Everybody assumed Philippe would have had a hand in naming the horse, but that’s not the case.

Craig Williams’ spectacular winning streak in Melbourne recently, has taken the spotlight off some fine performances in other states. A good example is Jason Holder’s dazzling 4 win haul at Morphettville a week ago.

I’m a keen watcher of Sky’s harness racing coverage on Saturday nights, which incorporates all races from Clifford Park, Toowoomba.  For several years now, I’ve been aware of the impressive strike rate of jockey Skye Bogenhuber. Rarely does a meeting go by that she doesn’t win at least one race, while doubles and trebles are common.

I was reminded of Matthew Smith’s background, as his 5 year old gelding Plymouth Road led all the way to win the 2400 metres BM 82 at Randwick on Saturday. Matthew was born and reared at Wangaratta in Victoria, which boasts one of the oldest country racetracks in Australia(1855). His Dad Christopher was a member of the Wangaratta Turf Club Committee, and a keen racehorse owner.

How often have you heard hackneyed clichés like “this is unbeatable” or “this is a good thing”, being bandied about at the track or the TAB outlet. We can’t include Winx or Black Caviar in this exercise, but I’m referring to horses who look near certainties, provided everything goes right in the run. One sprang instantly to mind, and that was an imported English horse called Marooned in 1986.

Most race callers are so intent on getting the job done accurately, they wouldn’t give a thought to throwing in a funny line. That kind of commentary wouldn’t have suited the late Bert Bryant, who died in 1991 following several years of indifferent health. Bert believed that punters having a bad day, needed some cheering up, and he set about developing an array of  “one liners” designed to take the pain out of losing your money.