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copyright
©
Geoff Ampt and courtesy Harness Racing Victoria |
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Herlihy
and Delft NZ win the 2006 Trotting Championship, Moonee Valley
copyright
©
Gary Wild and courtesy Harness Racing Victoria |
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Tony Herlihy and Chokin easily win the 1993 Miracle Mile, Harold
Park
photo courtesy NSW Harness Racing Club |
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Tony Herlihy and Diamond Field lead the field on their way to
winning the 1994 Trotting Championship, Harold Park
photo courtesy NSW Harness Racing Club |
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Tony Herlihy and Pride Of Petite USA return to scale after their
1997 Trotting Championship win in Adelaide
copyright
©
Atkins Photography |
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Tony Herlihy with Christopher Vance
photo courtesy "100 years of the New Zealand Trotting Cup" |
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Tony Herlihy and Buster Hanover NZ hold on to beat Homer Hawk
(JR Anderson) and Knight Pistol (Kerryn Manning) in the 1998
Trotting Championship, Harold Park
copyright
©
Clyde Lett |
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Tony Herlihy and Bellas Boy NZ after their 2003 Victoria Derby
win
copyright
©
Geoff Ampt and courtesy Harness Racing Victoria |
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Returning to scale after winning the 2008 Auckland Cup with Gotta Go Cullen
photo courtesy Trish Dunell, NZ |
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Winning the 2007 NZ Trot with
One Over Kenny
photo courtesy Trish Dunell, NZ |
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TROTTING GRAND FINAL MASTER DRIVER
Reverently admired on both sides of the Tasman as “The Ice Man”
for his nerves of steel, Tony Herlihy has compiled a record as a
harness horseman that has long sustained him at the top of his
profession.
New Zealand’s most prolific winning reinsman of all time,
Herlihy dominates the list of drivers of Inter Dominion Trotting
Grand Final winners in a manner similar to that in which his
Australian counterpart Brian Hancock has captured the laurels in
the pacing section.
Herlihy’s Trotting Grand Final victories have been recorded with
Diamond Field (1994), Pride Of Petite (1997), Buster Hanover
(1998) and Delft (2006).
These triumphs form a significant chapter in the outstanding
career to date of Herlihy, who, purely through innate ability,
raced virtually out of nowhere into the forefront of the code.
From modest beginnings in the mid-l970s, he quickly enhanced his
reputation to become an enduring household name in harness
racing in this part of the world.
The Herlihy saga began when as a youngster in a “non trotting”
family in Te Awamutu he enjoyed spending school holidays helping
his uncle, the late Arnie Gadsby, who was then stable foreman
for legendary trainer Roy Purdon.
Upon leaving school, Tony, as a 16-year-old, joined up with
uncle Arnie, who by this time was flourishing as private trainer
for high-profile Auckland owner Ted Bennett. From a small string
in that stable came a tidy percentage of winners, most notable
of them being 1974 Great Northern Derby and 1975 Auckland Cup
victor Captain Harcourt.
During eight years working full-time with his uncle, Herlihy
launched his driving career as “probationer” (junior) at 19
years old in the 1977/78 season. Not possessing a family
background recognised in the game, it took time to prove he was
worth driving assignments. He won a couple of races in that
first season and 11 the next.
By his third season, Tony had reached the top of the juniors’
list. In 1980/81 he shared the title with Cantabrian Paul Young,
while in his final term at that level he was out on his own, his
42 wins well clear of runner-up Robin Swain’s 27. It actually
placed him fifth in the overall national premiership, and he
became the first to rack up 100 wins whilst licensed as a
junior.
In his first year as an open reinsman, Herlihy, with 69 wins,
beat all but Robert Cameron (88). Third the following year
(1983/84), he cracked it for his first premiership title in
1985; this with a national-record 112 wins. Also setting up
briefly as a trainer around this time, he had moderate success
in that role before abandoning it in deference to the heavy
demands on him as a reinsman.
Having married Suzanne, daughter of Roy and Margaret Purdon,
late in 1981, it was inevitable that Tony would become part of
the powerful Purdon machine that incorporated the two thriving
South Auckland complexes of Roy and his eldest son and partner
Barry.
Tony officially signed up with them in 1986, and it was a union
ordained to be victorious. That season runner-up to arch rival
Maurice McKendry in the drivers’ premiership, Herlihy gained
international acclaim when taking out the World Driving
Championship from compatriate and defending titleholder Bob
Cameron in the 1985 series, waged on both sides of the Tasman.
As first driver for the all-conquering Purdon camp, it was a
foregone conclusion that Herlihy would add to his credits. In
the 1986/87 season, his 114 winners bettered his own record, and
he outdid that with 118 the following term. However, McKendry
took the record and the premiership from him with 127.
Then taking second spot behind McKendry through half a dozen
seasons, Herlihy nevertheless drove the winners of more
important races, earning more in stakes, and contributed to the
Purdons’ ongoing dominance of the New Zealand trainers’
premiership.
Both McKendry (then aged 35) and Herlihy (32) posted their
1000th winners toward the end of the 1990/91 season. In that
term’s Auckland Inter Dominion series, Herlihy, driving
Christopher Vance, was beaten a head by Mark Purdon with Mark
Hanover as the stablemates trained by Roy and Barry Purdon
quinellaed the Pacing Grand Final. However, Herlihy gained a
clear-cut win in the New Zealand Drivers’ Championship that
June, and only a few days earlier, wife Suzanne presented Tony
with a daughter Rachael, the couple’s fourth child.
Season 1993/94 was a most memorable one for Tony Herlihy. He
toppled Maurice McKendry from the driver’s premiership and won
the newly-formulated Australasian Drivers Championship (waged at
Auckland and Cambridge). On the way to his 124 wins for stakes
totalling $1.4 million in his homeland, Herlihy guided the
Purdon stable star Chokin to victories in the New Zealand
Free-for-All and Cup and Auckland Cup. For good measure, he and
Chokin easily took the Miracle Mile at Sydney’s Harold Park and
the Victoria Cup at Melbourne’s Moonee Valley.
After qualifying with a win, a fifth and a second in his heats
of the 1994 Sydney Inter Dominions, Chokin had to be
sensationally withdrawn from the Grand Final, due to an apparent
bacterial infection. Herlihy gained substantial compensation by
taking out the Trotters Grand Final with the Purdon stable’s top
square-gaiter of the time, Diamond Field. Boasting excellent New
Zealand form with him, Herlihy reined him to second placings in
each of his two heats, earning favouritism for the big event.
His many supporters would have gasped as he broke and lost 50
metres in the early running. But he was not to be denied.
Catching the field two laps out, he stormed home wide out to
score by just over a length.
For good measure, Herlihy and Diamond Field wound up a wonderful
1994 campaign by winning the Rowe Cup in Auckland. Aged seven at
this stage, Diamond Field, a gelding by American trotting sire
Yankee Jolter from a grand trotting mare in Robyn Evander, had
finished fourth for Herlihy in the previous year’s ID Grand
Final (won in Auckland by Barry Purdon with stablemate Night
Allowance). They finished third in the 1995 Grand Final (won in
Christchurch by Call Me Now) and sixth in Melbourne in 1996 (won
by Mark Purdon with Pride of Petite).
Driving Pride Of Petite in defending her title at the 1997 Inter Dominion carnival, Herlihy reined her to a thrilling win in a close photo-finish, from a 40m mark. A year later, he took out the coveted event with the favourite, Buster Hanover, while in 2006 he scored his fourth Trotting Grand Final win with Delft, assisted by specialist pre-training beach work. His 2009 runner-up finish with One Over Kenny NZ shows his reinsmanship is still top-class.
From 12 appearances in Inter Dominion Pacing Grand Finals
through 2009, Herlihy finished closest when runner-up with
Chokin behind Golden Reign in Christchurch in 1995. Chokin
actually finished fourth, but was promoted to second with the
subsequent disqualification of Victor Supreme and Young Mister
Charles on illegal substance charges.
In all, Herlihy’s winning tally at Inter Dominion level including the
2009 series is 16 qualifying divisions with trotters and 12
with pacers. He won a Trotting Consolation with Breton Abbe in
Christchurch in 1995 and Pacing Consolations with Ginger Man
(1995) and Brabham (Adelaide, 1997).
Apart from his grand Inter Dominion record, Herlihy boasts New
Zealand Cup wins with Luxury Liner (l988), Christopher Vance
(1991) and Chokin (1993), while he has won a staggering eight
Auckland Cups: Comedy Lad (1986), Luxury Liner (1987 and 1988),
Christopher Vance (1991), Chokin (1993 and 1994) plus Sharp and
Telford (1996) and Gotta Go Cullen (2008).
Other top Australian based victories included three Miracle Mile
pacing Invitationals with Christopher Vance (1991) and Chokin
(1993,1994). He also scored in the Victoria Derby in 2001 with
Rare Gem NZ and again in 2003 with Bella's Boy, which he
co-owned with John Season.
Eight times New Zealand's leading reinsman between 1984/85 and 2004/05, Herlihy continues to add to his achievements. At the close of the 2008/09 season, he led his country's honours list with 2870 wins and 59 Group 1 victories. That year his tally featured three Trotters Grand Circuit wins with One Over Kenny NZ, including the mare's second Rowe Cup, and making her the first Kiwi trotting mare to win $1 million.
His driving skills are in great demand, as evidenced by his career figures of some 15,700 starts in New Zealand plus Australia by end season 2008/09; he has recorded near 3,600 race wins and prizemoney exceeding $30million.
Success as a trainer has also come his way. After serving for several
seasons as right-hand man in the South
Auckland stable of Barry Purdon’s youngest brother Mark, Herlihy
began the new millennium by setting himself up as a public
trainer upon Mark moving to re-establish in Canterbury. Fame and
fortune in this role also were quick to follow.
On a memorable night at Auckland’s Alexandra Park in October,
2001, Herlihy wrote himself again indelibly into the history
books by driving seven of the 10 winners, four of them from his
own stable.
Since 2001/02, he has averaged well over 50 wins per season as a trainer, with his horses' earnings for his owners in New Zealand alone already more than $5.5 million. Among his current lead horses is One Over Kenny, recently confirmed as the Grand Circuit Trotters Champion (2008/2009), with three major wins and a second placing, well ahead of Sundons Gift and Stig.
Through his dual careers and major achievements as both trainer and driver Tony Herlihy has built up a significant presence and influence in the industry over some three decades. The signs are that this will continue for some-time yet – and standardbred enthusiasts will have many more opportunities to appreciate his skills, particularly those demonstrated in his Inter-Dominion Trotting Grand finals wins.
GRAND CIRCUIT OR GROUP ONE RACES WON BY
TONY HERLIHY |
| INTER DOMINION TROTTERS CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL |
Delft NZ (2006)
Buster Hanover NZ (1998)
Pride Of Petite USA (1997)
Diamond Field NZ (1994) |
| INTER DOMINION CONSOLATION |
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| – PACERS |
Brabham NZ (1997)
Gingerman NZ (1995) |
| – TROTTERS |
Breton Abbe NZ (1995) |
| INTER DOMINION
CHAMPIONSHIP HEATS |
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| – PACERS |
Auckland Reactor NZ (2009)
Sly Flyin NZ (2003)
Courage Under Fire NZ (2000)
Anvil Vance NZ (1998)
Try A Fluke NZ (1998)
Chokin NZ (1994, 1995)
Christopher Vance NZ (1992 x 2, 1993)
Luxury Liner (1988)
Ao Marama (1983) |
| – TROTTERS |
One Over Kenny NZ (2009)
Allegro Agitato NZ (2005)
Delft NZ (2005 x 2, 2006 x 2)
Last Sunset NZ (2001 x 2)
Kawarau Invasion NZ (2000)
Sundons Way NZ (1999 x 2)
Buster Hanover NZ (1998 x 2)
Pride Of Petite USA (1997)
Diamond Field NZ (1995)
Breton Abbe NZ (1994) |
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For a list of Tony Herlihy's Grand Circuit and Major Australian Race wins – click here |
| race footage |
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2006 Trotting Final
Race footage courtesy Harness
Racing Victoria and Provideo |
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1998 Trotting Final
Race footage courtesy NSW
Harness Racing Club |
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1997 Trotting Final
Race footage copyright © John
Rothe |
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1994 Trotting Final
Race footage courtesy Mike Dickinson |
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