The smile on Scott Aspery’s face said it all as Uzziah snatched victory in the last few strides of Saturday’s Midway. For a Newcastle hobby trainer to saddle up a city winner is one thing. When you’ve only got two horses in the stable it’s something else again. To get both horses worked each morning, Scott has to be “up and at ‘em” at a ridiculously early hour. When Uzziah and stablemate Annulus have been cooled out, rugged and returned to their boxes it’s time for Scott to don his hat as a driver for Newcastle based Etch Couriers. He returns to his Broadmeadow stables in the afternoon to exercise both horses before “feeding up” and bedding them down for the night.
Uzziah had raced without luck in four starts since winning a Class 2 at Muswellbrook at the end of March. He’d been hampered at a crucial stage in the straight when fifth only two lengths behind Sweet Mercy in a Rosehill Midway on May 20th. Reece Jones who’s been Uzziah’s regular rider of late, was intent on taking bad luck out of the equation on Saturday. He had no hesitation in allowing the big gelding to stride forward from a middle draw and had him in a good rhythm outside the leader Kyeema from the first turn. The pair had it between them all the way down the straight with Uzziah digging deep under vigorous riding. He literally worried Kyeema out of the prize by a narrow margin, to take Jones within a single win of losing his allowance. Four races later Devil’s Throat took him to the ranks of fully fledged jockeys.
Back go the ears as Uzziah lunges at the line to win the Midway - courtesy Steve Hart Photographics.
Uzziah was a $5000 purchase for Scott Aspery at the 2020 Adelaide Magic Millions Sale, after having been “pinhooked” by Rushton Thoroughbreds for $16,000 at the Inglis Australian Weanling Sale a year earlier. Saturday’s Midway success gives Uzziah a record of four wins and six placings from only fourteen starts for $155,000 - a pleasing result for Scott and partners Corey, Kim, Troy and Kylie McLeod. At the very same Adelaide sale, Scott “specked” a Your Song colt for a mere $3,000. Now known as Annulus that “afterthought” has won $122,000 in Scott’s ownership exclusively. Total purchase outlay for the pair was $8,000 - total prize money so far is $277,000. These are the kind of results that give smaller players a ray of hope in today’s surreal thoroughbred economy.
The other half of Scott's team - Annulus wins easily at Newcastle with Mitchell Bell in the saddle - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
Scott Aspery was born and reared in the NSW northern rivers township of Casino and was riding ponies from a very early age. His grandfather Bill had been an amateur jockey while his father Rupert enjoyed success as a hobby trainer during Scott’s childhood. By early teens young Aspery was riding trackwork for his dad, as was “a superstar in waiting” called Chris Munce. Although his passion for thoroughbreds had been ignited Scott knew he had to leave Casino behind, and see what the world had to offer.
After completing his secondary education in his hometown, Scott enrolled for a Bachelor of Commerce Degree at Newcastle University. After two years of study he made the important decision to change Universities and pursue a different degree. He was able to arrange a transfer to Lismore’s Southern Cross Uni where he enrolled for a Bachelor of Applied Science, majoring in Fisheries and Agriculture. He gained that degree with honours in 1997, but didn’t need it when he landed his first job in Sydney a year later. He started his professional life as a teller with the Westpac Banking Corp. at North Sydney, graduating to Executive Assistant with Westpac Private after only twelve months. By 2001 he was working as a mortgage consultant with a company called Mortgage Portfolio Management P/L. He later became Business Development Manager for the Austral Mortgage Company. He was moving fast and opportunities clearly abounded, but the thoroughbred “bug” continued to niggle. He was dressed in an impressive business suit and driving a BMW when he went out to Randwick on one occasion to call on a client. When that meeting concluded and acting purely on impulse he drove around to Bowral Street, Kensington and parked the BMW outside Tulloch Lodge.
“Gai Waterhouse was absent from the office and I got to talk to foreman Pat Sexton who was “hiring and firing” at the time,” said Scott. “When I enquired about job vacancies, Pat glanced at my suit and at the BMW parked outside before querying my motive in wanting to work in a stable. When I persisted he agreed to give me a job and asked me to start the following morning at 3 am. I questioned myself all the way back to the city, but the deal was done. I tendered my resignation as soon as I got back to the office and turned up at Tulloch Lodge the following morning at an ungodly 3 am. I was still there three and a half years later.”
Scott was wearing a similar suit to this when he walked into the Tulloch Lodge office - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
During his time with the bustling Tulloch Lodge operation, Scott graduated to riding a number of the big team in trot and canter work. “At over 80 kgs I was never going to be riding fast work, but I got to exercise some unforgettable horses,” he said. “If I had to pick three favourites I’d go for Desert War, Theseo and Grand Armee who won eighteen Gr 1 races between them. That gives me lifetime bragging rights.”
Scott’s Randwick adventure was like a game of musical chairs over the following four years. Firstly, he was flattered one morning at trackwork when John O’Shea came along with a generous proposal. He accepted, but was in the job only four months when Graeme Rogerson came along with a better one. One year later Scott returned to the O’Shea stables for another eighteen month stint. Thoughts of taking out his own licence had already surfaced, but he was anxious to finish his education under one of his idols. Scott was indeed fortunate to gain a start at Leilani Lodge at the time James Cummings was working for his legendary grandfather. “Bart was obviously in his twilight but still spent a lot of time at the stables,” said Scott. “It was a unique thrill to be in his company and I asked plenty of questions. The job lasted ten months and I was then ready to apply for my own ticket.”
Scott was fortunate to acquire boxes at Warwick Farm where he made a low key start to his training career. He came away from an Inglis Dispersal sale with a $3000 tried horse called Dictatorship whose form was uninspiring. He quickly dispensed with several items of gear the horse had been using, added a Norton bit and applied some synthetic filler to a troublesome foot issue before producing him in a 900m maiden at Newcastle with Robyn Freeman on board. It wasn’t a spectacular win but it attracted enough attention for Glen Spratt of Lustre Lodge at Wyong to offer the trainer a Fusaichi Pegasus yearling called Flight Of Pegasus. “He wasn’t top shelf but he was very good for me at the time,” said Scott. “He won at Wyong and Newcastle and ran good races at stakes level - third in a Skyline Stakes, fifth in a Run To The Rose, fifth in a Golden Rose.”
A magic moment! Scott's first win with Dictatorship (Robyn Freeman) at Newcastle 05/02/2011 - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
It’s well documented that reputations don’t just happen, they have to be earned. Reports of Scott’s contribution to the Waterhouse, O’Shea, Rogerson and Cummings stables had preceded his arrival at Warwick Farm. It wasn’t long before he was training a small team of his own, and pre-training a dozen or more Hong Kong bound horses for bloodstock agent Anton Koolman.
Scott’s first metropolitan win was provided by a Not A Single Doubt mare called Just A Girl who won at Canterbury in March 2013 with Blake Shinn in the saddle. Jim Cassidy was the rider when she scored at Randwick in a three year old event two weeks later, while Jason Collett had the ride when she gave her trainer another city success at Canterbury in July of 2013.
Estonian Princess was the horse to take her trainer to the world of stakes racing. The Snitzel filly was placed three times before winning a Randwick maiden at her seventh start with Kathy O’Hara in the saddle, and followed that with a cracking second to Sweet Idea in the $1m Magic Millions Guineas. She gave connections a rare thrill in coming from last to brilliantly win the Gr 3 J.H.B. Carr Stakes at Randwick with Brenton Avdulla up. She actually finished third to Rudy in the 2014 Villiers Stakes but was relegated to fourth after having caused Strawberry Boy some inconvenience in the straight. “After the Villiers the owners decided to sell fifty per cent of the mare back to the breeders, and I lost a lovely mare,” said Scott. “There’s not a trainer on the planet who hasn’t lost a horse somewhere along the line, but that one really hurt.”
Estonian Princess (Brenton Avdulla) came from last to score a spectacular win in the Gr. 3 JHB Carr Stakes at Randwick 26/04/2014 - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
After six and a half years at Warwick Farm Aspery opted for a change of environment at Gosford. He enjoyed the rural atmosphere at the popular central coast venue but was frustrated by a lack of swimming facilities. “Admittedly the Narara River was close by but it just wasn’t practical to be spending so much time getting horses to the allotted location,” said Scott. “I’m fanatical about a regular swimming routine for the horses. I had little choice but to move on when a small block of stables became available at Newcastle. Strangely enough it wasn’t long after our move to Newcastle that things got a bit tough, and I opted to give the training away for a while.”
He was chuffed to be offered the dream job by former client Tim Hughes who’d developed his Yarramalong Valley property “Carinya Lodge” into a state of the art spelling and pre-training farm. Scott spent the next two years managing an operation supported by high profile trainers like John O’Shea, Chris Waller, Gerald Ryan, and Ron Quinton. “We had some pretty notable horses through the place including Trapeze Artist who’d just been valued at $40m as a stud proposition,” said Scott. “The property had been owned previously by radio legend John Laws, and offered a glorious environment for horses. It was a pleasure to work there.”
Scott cherishes the lucky day in 2009 when John O’Shea left him with the job of hiring a new stablehand. “A lovely English girl called Julia came in for the interview and impressed me instantly,” he said. “She’d been working in Human Resources but was looking for a change of direction. She’d ridden showjumpers in the UK and had gained further riding experience when working on a Northern Territory cattle station. Not only did Julia get the job, but I’m delighted to say we’re still together and the proud parents of two lovely daughters Sasha (9) and Madison (7).”
On the eve of his fiftieth birthday, Scott is enjoying his dual role as courier driver and hobby horse trainer. He hasn’t so much as hinted that he might train horses full time again, but you get the feeling he’s left the door ajar. Should another three or four horses like Uzziah and Annulus suddenly appear, the man from Casino would be sorely tempted.
Scott and Uzziah take a well deserved bow after Saturday's Midway - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
(Banner image - Uzziah (outside) and Kyeema staged a thrilling dual in the Midway - courtesy Steve Hart Photographics.)