Locals ready to repel interstaters in Australian Female Drivers' Championship

05 March 2018 | PAUL COURTS
NATALEE EMERY and KRISTY GRANT

NATALEE EMERY and KRISTY GRANT Photo by Stacey Lear

LOCAL stars Natalee Emery and Kristy Grant are quietly confident of repelling the interstate challengers in Launceston on Sunday night.

Emery and Grant will represent Tasmania in the Australian Female Drivers’ Championship, which has attracted a host of the nation’s leading reinswomen.

“This is the first time I have represented Tasmania and I’m pretty excited,” Grant said. “My selection came as a bit of a shock, as I have only just returned to driving.

“I had some time off due to some pretty big falls, but I’m loving being back.

“It always comes down to the draw in these kinds of races, but we’ll be doing our best for Tassie.”

Emery echoed Grant’s sentiment, while pointing to the home ground advantage.

“Some wonderful drivers are coming across and we’ll be doing our best to ensure a home state victory,” Emery said. “It will be friendly, but extremely competitive.

“Hopefully we will have a bit of advantage knowing the tracks and the local form, but you need that bit of luck in the draw to get the right horses in these series.”

In a night dedicated to the industry’s leading ladies, each of the nine races on the program will be conducted as part of the series.

The evening also doubles as the finale of the Teal Pants campaign, which has been operating throughout Australasia since February 1.

Each reinswoman is sporting a pair of special teal racing pants to raise awareness and valuable funds for ANZGOG – Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Oncology Group.

Money is donated by the various state governing bodies, certain racing clubs, and betting agencies for each win the women complete

Since Queenslander Isobel Ross’ triumph on February 1 – in just the second race of the day – the teal pants squad have registered an amazing 215 wins.

 

Related News

19 September 2024
Gloucester Park Preview Friday 20 September 2024
Harper’s golden streak Star reinsman Kyle Harper celebrated a notable milestone at Gloucester Park on Tuesday night when he drove four winners on a program for the first time --- and he has high hopes of continuing his golden streak by guiding Talks Up A Storm to victory in the $31,000 The West...
18 September 2024
Third good enough to complete TAB punter's $18,500 collect
He might have been well beaten into third, but Playnice’s minor placing was music to the ears of one TAB customer at Shepparton last week.
18 September 2024
A reason to smile for Patsy as a Group 1 helps warm spirits
The joys of what a Group 1 win can bring couldn’t be more evident then the smile that lit up 92-year-old majority owner Patsy Abrahams’ face after Rapid Return hit the line first in Saturday night’s Vicbred Super Series final for four-year-old trotting mares.
18 September 2024
Huntsville... is he the next Super Sire Down Under?
It's astonishing to see how much Huntsville has accomplished in Australia from a single racing crop. The leading son of Somebeachsomewhere, was a $1.8 million-dollar earner who not only boastsan impressive race record, but also a breeders dream when it comes to mare matching. His Dam Wild West Show...
18 September 2024
Grimson sets sights on Victoria
JASON Grimson could have as many as four runners in his quest to win the $300,000 Group 1 Victoria Cup for the first time. Grimson, 31, has been a revelation in Australia’s training ranks since Boncel Benjamin’s upset win on protest in the 2021 Sydney Inter Dominion. Although he won the 2022...
Click for more