By Casey O'Connor
It seems all roads led to Warwick last Saturday with races at Allman Park and the Brisbane Broncos wrapping up their visit to the Rose City with a trial game against South’s Logan at Fr Ranger Oval.
Congratulations to all those involved in the organisation of the Broncos visit and the trial. It was a massive job for the Cowboys committee, supporters and players but it was executed very well. The day ran smoothly with no apparent hiccups. The playing surface was presented in magnificent order with some visiting players commenting it was if anything a little too soft.
The Broncos were, as you would expect, outstanding. Senior players Andrew McCulloch, Matt Lodge and Tevita Pangai Jnr along with coach Antony Seibold were generous with their time and great with fans and junior players.
Unfortunately I was unable to attend the Sportsman’s Dinner on the Friday night but speaking with long-time Cowboys committeeman Danny Lyons on Saturday he confirmed it was a great evening.
The trial game certainly showed that the Broncos have plenty of emerging talent. Youngsters Tom Dearden – who is just 17 years old and currently too young to play in the NRL competition – Tanah Boyd and Corey Paix showed they will keep the incumbent players on their toes and impressed the big crowd, but more importantly the Broncos coach. Anthony Seibold spent most of the game sitting on the grass behind the goal posts taking in the action and looked very much at home at Fr Ranger Oval.
The excitement early in the day centred not around football but Randwick Racecourse and Winx as she dominated a good field in the Apollo Stakes to make it win number 30. Although she looked to be going half-pace in her win she ran another race record as she notched up a record third win in the Apollo Stakes.
Only a couple of chances remain for fans to enjoy the mighty mare as her owners have confirmed this will be her farewell campaign, despite many hoping she would go on to the Cox Plate in the Spring.
I doubted I would ever see the likes of Black Caviar – I know I will never be fortunate enough to see another Winx.
Casey
