Greg Coney had barely reached his teen years when he first set foot in the bustling north western NSW city of Tamworth - the state’s second largest inland city. At that stage of his life young Greg was firmly ensconced with his family at Kiama, a coastal township 120km south of Sydney. What would draw a twelve year old from Kiama to Tamworth you may ask.
Greg’s father Bob wasn’t actively involved with horses but often mingled with south coast trotting horsemen at his Kiama “local”. Perhaps he was mingling longer than usual one night when he agreed to join a group of mates who were putting together a syndicate to race a Leander Lobell filly. That filly Leander Valance won only one or two races, but was indirectly responsible for Greg Coney’s lifetime obsession with harness horses.
“Neil Shaw trained the filly on the private track at Dapto where the legendary Vic Frost began his amazing career,” recalled Greg. “Leander Valance was probably a four year old when Neil suggested they should take her and a couple of other horses all the way to Tamworth in search of easier races. That was the first of several times I jumped in the truck and made that long trip with Neil, Dad and a few other blokes. More often than not we’d drive home after the trots. The sun was usually coming up when we finally got back to Kiama. I quickly became hooked on harness racing, and there was something about Tamworth I liked a lot.”
Jemma enjoyed a stellar 2021 season. Here she is after a win on Datizit 02/12/2021 - courtesy PeterMac Photography.
From that moment on you couldn’t keep young Greg Coney away from harness horses. Weekends he’d be on the train to Dapto where he’d hang on every word uttered by Neil Shaw. He had an insatiable appetite for knowledge of the training and management of the pacer and trotter. When it was time to join the workforce Greg was delighted to join his father’s business, installing fuel tanks and petrol pumps at South Coast service stations. Bob Coney could see however that harness racing dominated his son’s thoughts.
Greg later spent five years training horses full time from Fay and Ray Wisbey’s well appointed property at Berry. His passion for the sport grew day by day, and his talent as a trainer was becoming increasingly obvious. Greg was thrilled when his parents invested in a property at Worrigee where a training track was quickly installed. He fondly remembers a handful of horses who gave his career a much needed kick along. Perhaps his all time favourite is Swaggie’s Girl who won only four races but one of them was at Harold Park - the place where every aspiring trotting horseman wanted to win. In August 1991 Greg won a mares race on Swaggie’s Girl at odds of 20/1. It meant the world to the young horseman.
Another favourite was Charlie Bravo who was in the stable around the same time as Swaggie’s Girl. This son of Armbro Whiz raced consistently throughout a 97 start career which yielded 17 wins and a whopping 28 placings. You would have needed anesthetic to get Greg out of Charlie Bravo’s cart. Easily the pick of Coney’s NZ purchases over the years was Wyneden Line who posted 14 wins and 22 placings for the South Coast horseman. He drove the horse in most of those wins which included several at Harold Park.
Greg’s love of Tamworth had been tugging at his heart strings for close to four decades. It was obvious the sport was well established in the region, and he rather liked the idea of racing on the smaller track.
“There was something old world about Tamworth harness racing,” he said. “There were no Menangle horses coming through my operation, and the times they were running at Penrith scared me to death. I can always travel to Sydney if I come across a city class horse. For now I can find the right races for average horses in a great little trotting community at Tamworth.”
Greg Coney receives the champion North Western Trainers Award 2020 - courtesy PeterMac Photography.
Coney made the life changing move four years ago and doesn’t have a single regret. He was able to arrange accommodation in the showground complex and arrived with a small team of horses which included Dawson Street, Jetaway Joe and Ultimate Dawn - all three helped to get the trainer up and going in his new environment. His strike rate over the last few seasons has been one of the most impressive in country harness racing.
In recent months the Coney stable has reeled off a sequence of wins with horses like Runfromterror, Casino Comedy, Watchful Lady, Dothedealdylan, Roger That, Kalypso Sal, and Datizit.
Greg has a great deal of time for Runfromterror who began his racing career with Menangle trainer David Thorn. He was unplaced in five starts at headquarters but commanded plenty of space in the stewards reports. “He either struck interference from other runners or made his own bad luck through sheer inexperience,” said Greg. “The owners decided a bush preparation would allow him to learn the ropes without the pressure of the Menangle style of racing. Not only has he appreciated the drop in class, but he’s made a lot of natural improvement.”
He’s won six of ten starts for Greg, and four of those wins have been against older horses while still a two year old. Under the newly implemented Australasian standardbred birthday date, Runfromterror and all horses of his generation turned a year older on January 1st.
Runfromterror isn't short on action but has won 5 races at Tamworth for the Coney stable - courtesy PeterMac Photography.
Greg has been happy to step back from driving duties since moving to Tamworth, principally to lend support to step daughter Madi Young and daughter Jemma Coney. Madi, winner of the 2018 Rising Stars Series was a regular visitor to Tamworth in the first two years after Gregs relocation and drove a number of winners for the stable. Jemma has emerged as one of the most promising junior talents in the state. As the new season begins, the nineteen year old has 65 winners on the board which includes two trebles and an astonishing twenty doubles. Not surprisingly she won the Under 23 and the Tamworth Female Drivers Premierships in the season just gone.
Watchful Lady is no oil painting but has paid her way on the racetrack - courtesy PeterMac Photography.
Jemma’s not the only member of the family to snare a premiership. In just four years in the region, Greg has posted one Tamworth premiership and two North Western training titles. The latter requires trainers to have had starters at Tamworth, Armidale, Narrabri and Inverell during the season. Clayton Harmey just nosed him out of another North Western premiership.
You won’t find a successful harness trainer who’s not a hard worker. At 52 years of age Greg Coney is working harder than ever before. He trains a team of fourteen horses before and after his full time job at a Tamworth Waste Water Plant. “We start around 4.30am, and the first few jog trips are in pitch black darkness,” says the trainer. “It’s amazing how you get into a routine when you’re juggling commitments. Sometimes we work horses when I’ve completed my duties at the Waste Water Plant. Race days are the toughest, but a winner or two helps ease the pain.
“None of this would be possible without the support of people like my wife Tneal, and Jenna who’s as dedicated as she is talented. A special mention of Russell Murray who’s usually at the stables when we arrive. Russell “mucks” the boxes, cleans and fills the water containers and does a million little jobs around the place. He’ll even jump in the cart and drive a horse trackwork if we’re stuck. He’s in his mid seventies but you’d never know it. Russ is one of those blokes every stable should have. My fourteen year old son Jye is shaping up as a future prospect. He’s still about six months off his mandatory trial drives, but is counting the minutes. This business gets into the blood.”
Greg has been operating from the on track stables since arriving in Tamworth, but a change of environment is imminent. “We’ve purchased a fifteen hectare property at Warrall just south of Tamworth, and will make the move as soon as we can get a suitable track completed,” he said. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I feel the time is right.”
Four decades after his first trip to Tamworth, Greg Coney now trains in the region. Here he is with former Sydney pacer Queen's Angel after one of nine wins on the Tamworth track - courtesy PeterMac Photography.
It’s always a source of interest to learn how people were lured into the harness racing sport, described by some as the most powerful of addictions. Had Bob Coney not snapped up a share in that Leander Lobell filly all those years ago, Greg may still be installing fuel tanks and petrol pumps up and down the south coast. Anybody noticing the look on his face when Jemma returns on a winner at Tamworth, will tell you he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
(Banner image - One of three wins for Jemma Coney at Tamworth in December. Dothedealdylan was one of two winners for Greg while Jemma also won a race for the Brendan James stable - courtesy PeterMac Photography.)