There were plenty of boxes under racing's Christmas tree this year, most of them full of promises. A few of them may take a while to open but the sport is ready to embark on a new era in Sydney with world-class facilities just around the corner. This year has seen the biggest change in the Sydney racing landscape in 40 years and it will start to bear fruit in the next
18 months. Two clubs are now one and there is a new breed of administrators sweeping through the sport.
John Messara has the position he has long coveted, as chairman of Racing NSW, and he will want to make his mark. His board could have a war-chest of funds if the High Court decision falls the way of Racing NSW in the legal wrangling over the race fields legislation, which is due to be finally sorted out as early as next month. If the decision goes against Racing NSW, Messara will have to run a sport that is crying out for money and has an unsustainable budget.
That Messara is also the boss of Arrowfield Stud has led to calls from certain quarters about a conflict of interest. But the majority view is that he is a man of action and will be good for the industry. Whatever, Messara will certainly be judged on what he achieves for the racing industry as a whole, and not just one sector, whether he has a keen interest in it or not. He will, of course, always have his critics. It will be impossible to make changes and keep everyone happy.
Redevelopment of Sydney racecourses comes with a $150 million gift from the TAB's cartoon racing, but in the distribution of the cash, country and provincial clubs have to get their share. They have been like kids on Santa's knee.
They have plans for their windfall. Lights at Gosford, a synthetic track at Kembla, work on the tracks at Hawkesbury and Newcastle could all be funded by the provincials' share of the cartoon bonanza. Country clubs want more prizemoney and surely have some capital works in mind as well.
But kids don't always get what they want and it sometimes comes down to whether they have been too naughty in the preceding year.
Messara will also hear from the clubs about race dates. The status quo is sure to be challenged on Saturday provincial meetings. He might also look at extending the stand-alone Saturdays enjoyed by Hawkesbury and Scone to include clubs such as Wagga Wagga and Gosford.
Back in Sydney, there will be no Randwick for the majority of the year, other than at carnival times. The pressure will be on the other tracks to stand up to a pounding.
The pay-off for the inconvenience of Randwick's closure will be public facilities that are the equal of any racecourse in the world. Racegoers demand comfort when go to the track. For years, Sydney folk have headed to Flemington and Caulfield and talked of the top-class facilities as opposed to the antiquated ones in Sydney.
The ATC was created to encourage Sydneysiders to go to the races by improving the facilities. It has delivered on its plans for Warwick Farm, with council approving the redevelopment, giving racing another revenue stream.
This is the first part of long-term plan providing not only for the public but also the horsemen. They need better tracks to prepare their horses.
That's another promise. Let's hope not too many of them are empty.
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