Clean sweep of Racing Awards

White Robe Lodge made a clean sweep of the Otago racing awards for the 2016-17 season at a function at Wingatui on Saturday night (2/9/2017).

Tommy Tucker was accorded Horse of the Year and Stayer of the year with other awards to Coulee (sprinter-miler),  Raise You Ten (three-year-old) and Gold Leaf (jumper). Their trainers Brian and Shane Anderton took the award for trainer and strike rate trainer. Stable apprentice Jacob Lowry took the jockey award. Brian and Lorraine Anderton, principals of WRL, also took the owner award. WRL took the breeder award.

Tommy Tucker won the group three Canterbury Gold Cup (2000m), listed Easter Cup (1600m) and listed Timaru Cup (1600m) during the season for owners Brian and Lorraine Anderton and Ian Nichol. He was the top stake earner for the stable with $155,925.

Coulee had group three wins in the White Robe Lodge Handicap (1600m) and South Island Breeders' Stakes (1600m) for Brian and Lorraine, Gordon Dickson, Maurice Hampton, the Diamond, White Flash and Woolshed Wednesday syndicates.

Raise You Ten, owned by Frank Conway, won the listed Gore Guineas and Gold Leaf (raced by Brian and Lorraine, Terry Burke, the Diamond syndicate, Ron and Jennifer Williamson) won the Great Western Hurdle.

Brian and Shane Anderton won 48 races and amassed $916,627 in stakes for the season with horses they trained.

Tommy Tucker, Coulee and Gold Leaf are all by the WRL sire Gallant Guru, the leading South Island-based sire for the season.

Fellow WRL sire, Raise The Flag is the sire of Raise You Ten.

Jacob Lowry, who is indentured to Brian Anderton, was the leading SI apprentice with 48 wins. He reached a century for his career at Ashburton on July 7.

Lowry rode Tommy Tucker in his wins and Coulee in the Breeders' Stakes.

The judging panel for the awards comprised representatives of the Otago, Oamaru, Kurow, Waikouaiti and Beaumont racing clubs, Jonny Turner, racing writer for the Otago Daily Times and a representative of the Racing Integrity Unit.