RACE CLUBS DEALT A

THE snap lockdown for the south of the state due to a Covid-infected man escaping hotel quarantine earlier this week has hit Hobart’s thoroughbred and harness clubs.

The Tasmanian Racing Club’s Saturday thoroughbred meeting at Elwick that was to coincide with the Caulfield Cup meeting in Melbourne, was a sell-out with the attendee limit capped at 1000.

The club has few opportunities outside of its Hobart Cup meeting to turn a profit and this meeting was a key to it meeting budget.

Tasracing was forced to abandon the TRC meeting and the Tasmanian Trotting Club’s special feature harness race meeting at Elwick on Sunday night has been postponed.

The last two feature two-year-old harness events, the $50,000 Dandy Patch Stakes for colts and geldings and the $50,000 Evicus Stakes for fillies were the features on the 10-event card on Sunday night. Tasracing has arranged for the meeting to go ahead on Wednesday but with Sky2 coverage, although there is no guarantee the meeting will proceed as it will depend on the three-day lockdown ending at 6pm on Monday.

Tasmanian racing was shut down in April last year for 10 weeks even though every other jurisdiction in Australia continued to race with worse Covid situations.

Premier thoroughbred trainer Scott Brunton was bitterly disappointed in losing Saturday’s gallop meeting as he had entered 23 horses for the seven-race meeting.

The training facility at Brighton to accommodate normal training trackwork will remain open, but only to essential staff, which includes trainers, veterinarians, farriers, those who feed the animals and those who assist in animal welfare.

Trials at the Carrick harness facility on Monday will proceed but no southern-based participants are permitted to attend.

Greyhound trials to be held at Elwick during the lockdown will proceed as planned as they are considered an important component of care and welfare of greyhounds.