With just 25 horses in work at Taree, Tony Ball did well to post five wins and five placings for the month of August. He got on the board on the ninth of the month with a double at Tuncurry-Forster courtesy of Onepointsevengone (Maddy Owen) and All Too Rosey (Mollie Fitzgerald). Another double came up at Taree one week later with Run Rory Run (Leanne Boyd) and Highly Tempted (Matt McGuren). He made it five for the month when Telegraph (Luke Rolls) won a BM66 at lengthy odds on the Taree track.
Tony worked for other people for a total of twenty years before deciding to go solo just over five years ago. He spent a decade with vastly experienced Port Macquarie trainer Neil Godbolt before putting in twelve months with the equally adept Ross Stitt down the road at Taree. Anxious to further his education Tony grabbed the opportunity to join the massive Darley operation under Peter Snowden at Warwick Farm. He was retained when owner Sheikh Mohammed switched to the Godolphin brand in 2014 with John O’Shea as head trainer, to be replaced later by James Cummings. Tony didn’t waste a minute of the tutelage he gained from some master horsemen over those two decades.
Tony Ball had two decades of experience under the belt before becoming a trainer in his own right just 5 years ago - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
He put that experience to good use on returning to the mid north coast and has prepared more than seventy winners to date establishing a very healthy strike rate along the way. He recently purchased the Taree stables from which Ross Stitt enjoyed great success over many years. He’s won only three outside races to date with Debussy but rates the Choisir gelding as the best horse he’s trained so far. Debussy has just returned to the Ball stables after a good break and is one for punters to follow this preparation.
Xtra Approval was the horse to give Tony his biggest thrill to date by winning a TAB Highway at Rosehill two years ago with Reece Jones in the saddle. Debussy ran two close up fifths in Randwick TAB Highways last year. You can bet the trainer will give him another shot or two at the lucrative Highway prize money during his upcoming campaign.
Tony currently has two promising female apprentices on the team. Taree girl Leanne Boyd has shown promise with five wins in a short time, while Mollie Fitzgerald has been around long enough to have ridden some sixty five winners. Mollie has the added benefit of regular tuition from her father, former successful jockey Malcolm Fitzgerald.
Tony’s very pleased to have a five time winner called The Face on his team. The seven year old son of Rubick is the winner of metropolitan races for the Ryan/Alexiou team in Sydney and for David Vandyke in Brisbane. He’s had three runs so far for his new trainer including a pleasing fifth behind Briasa in a BM78 at Rosehill on August 31st. Twelve complimentary bags of Pryde’s EasiPerformance will soon land in Tony Ball’s feed room to mark his award winning performance last month.
Matt McGuren did the honours on Highly Tempted in an early race on the Taree card 16/08/2024 - courtesy Trackside Photography.
(Banner image - Run Rory Run was the second leg of Tony's winning double at Taree on August 16. Stable apprentice Leanne Boyd rode the horse to perfection - courtesy Trackside Photography.)
