Racing: Touch of irony in first training win

Paul Moroney trained his first winner yesterday and it couldn't have been more ironical.

The win of Realign in a $6000 event for maiden two-year-olds at the Waikato Racing Club's meeting at Te Rapa, yesterday was Moroney's first since establishing a new training partnership with brother Mike.

Realign was the horse involved in the disqualification last week of Mike Moroney's former training partner Andrew Scott. He was ousted for more than five months for falsifying a document.

Realign had raced in the $500,000 New Zealand Bloodstock Classique (1200m) for two-year-olds at Te Rapa on February 5 when it was insisted by Scott approval had been gained for the horse to race in blinkers.

It was subsequently found this was not the case.

In another irony, Paul Moroney said his Melbourne-based brother had trained a winner with his first runner and with Mike Moroney on hand for yesterday's win he was later able to joke about the feat.

"I told Mike afterwards I don't know what all the fuss was about."

Paul Moroney said he would only train in partnership with his brother until July 31 when Scott would return to the fold at Ballymore Stables in Matamata.

But he said it had been made clear to Scott that he was on his last warning after he was involved in an earlier incident.

Scott was fined $5000 (and costs of $1600) for bringing detriment to the image of racing and for a dishonest act in lying about why he wanted to use the swab box before the 2003 Kelt Capital Stakes at Hastings.

It was found Scott had injected his horse Penny Gem in the swab box with a homeopathic substance on the day and at the track.

Said Paul Moroney: "We've pretty much told him life's become a game of baseball at Ballymore Stables - three strikes and you're out."

Paul Moroney, 44, is two years younger than Mike, but said his new role as trainer is not a lot different to his previous position as the stable's racing manager which saw him a regular at trackwork.

"All it's done is double the amount of mornings I'm getting up early," he said. "It's a step up to the plate for me but it's not a lot different - I'm just at the track six days a week rather than three or four."

Paul Moroney will have his first group one runner on Saturday with New Zealand Derby winner Xcellent to run in the $100,000 weight-for-age Darley Stakes (2000m) at Ellerslie.

- NZPA