Top-ups admitted in Aquanita case

Mr Smerdon and I came to an arrangement, which was to mean something else.

Greg Nelligan

Former Aquanita float driver Greg Nelligan has admitted he made up and administered illegal bi-carb topups to horses for raceday treatment in a special arrangement with banned trainer Robert Smerdon.

Nelligan, who had been subpoenaed from Perth to give evidence at the appeal hearing of four of the banned Aquanita trainers, said Smerdon’s references to top-ups to Nelligan were meant as a “signal to do a raceday treatment”, reports Racing.com.

“Top-ups were to top-up feed and water but Mr Smerdon and I came to an arrangement, which was to mean something else — that was between he and I,” Nelligan told Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) deputy president Heather Lambrick.

Nelligan was grilled by Racing Victoria’s legal counsel Jeff Gleeson QC for more than two hours with Nelligan often seeking protection from possible future civil and criminal charges by stating the preamble: “I claim that the answer I am about to give, may tend to incriminate me“. Nelligan initially told the tribunal that he only dealt with Smerdon on the subject of bi-carb top-ups but later, when quizzed by Gleeson about “the circle of trust” referred to in an earlier interview with stewards, he identified all the charged persons.

When asked by Gleeson if Liam Birchley was in the circle of trust, Nelligan answered, “I think so” which triggered the following exchange. Gleeson: “Stuart Webb?” Nelligan: “I think so.” Gleeson: “Tony Vasil?” Nelligan: “Yes.”

Gleeson: “Robert Smerdon?” Nelligan: “Yes.”

Nelligan then claimed he could not think of anyone else in the circle of trust.

Gleeson then asked him whether stablehand Danny Garland, who told VCAT last week that he had no knowledge of the top-ups scandal, was in the circle of trust. Nelligan: “I probably think so.” Gleeson: “Trent Pennuto?” Nelligan: “I don’t get on with Trent Pennuto. I haven’t spoken to him for a long time. I never trusted him.”

Nelligan then agreed that his wife Denise was also in the circle of trust.

Nelligan said the horses were never topped-up in the float on the way to the races. However when asked whether those in the circle of trust would have administered topups at the stables before leaving for the races, Nelligan replied, “I wouldn’t be surprised”.

In his original interview with stewards after the pivotal Lovani “top-up” incident in the stalling box at Flemington in October 2017, Nelligan was found to have a text on his phone that mentioned “doing Cup horses” but he said he had no recollection of what that text meant.

“I remember nothing about two (Melbourne) Cup horses,” Nelligan said.

“I’ve got no idea. I never did a Cup horse.”

Nelligan, who along with his wife Denise, was banned for life by the Racing Appeals and Disciplinary (RAD) Board in May, told VCAT that although he did administer the illegal bi-carb top-ups to horses on raceday as per instructions from Smerdon, he often did not do so. “I was fearful of being caught. The majority of times, I didn’t do it,” he said.

Although Nelligan had more than 100 text messages related to top-ups on his phone seized by Racing Victoria stewards after the 2017 Lovani race day treatment charge from October 2017, he said he only carried out the treatments on “10, maybe 15 to 20 that I actually did it. Most of the time I didn’t.”

When quizzed by Gleeson as to why he topped-up horses illegally when fully aware he was breaking the rules, Nelligan replied: “Because I was asked”.