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By Gary Harley

Newcastle Jockey Club backs up from a bumper Spring Racing Carnival with a strong race midweek meeting on Thursday.

Les Bridge will send a promising three-year-old Columbus to Newcastle after he was a ‘good thing’ beaten on the track on debut on September 19 and was scratched from Rosehill on Wednesday.

A son of Dundeel, the horse will contest the 1500m New Era Technology Maiden Handicap with Tyler Schiller in the saddle having been backed from $3.40 into $2 favouritism on TAB.

Columbus (Tyler Schiller) prepares to head out on debut at Newcastle. Image by Bradley Photographers

The gelding carries the Arrowfield colours and he was at double-figure odds in the 1400m Newcastle Maiden with Schiller aboard.

Columbus settled midfield and was badly held up in the home straight before being checked 100m from home.

Columbus sprouted wings when eventually in the clear and only failed by three-quarters of a length.

The 3yo will relish the additional 100m and the race will be run on dry track conditions similar to his first start.

Hayek ($1.40 fav) is a natural speedster from the Bjorn Baker stable and the 3yo will be hard to beat when he resumes from a spell in the 900m Good Luck Sam Clenton @ Equimillion Maiden Handicap.

The gelding was a short-priced favourite on debut at Kembla on April 15 and after leading the field finished fourth not far away from quality 2yos Akaysha and Beadman.

He finished fourth in his other start at Randwick on April 26 and has displayed blistering speed in two recent Rosehill trial wins, and he draws okay in barrier 6. Hayek has been gelded during his spell and Regan Bayliss makes the trip for the mount.

Jason Collett is riding at the meeting and has two winnable mounts for the Richard & Will Freedman stable. He rides I Am A Winner ($7.50), one of a number of chances in the 900m The Adviser Collective Midway Benchmark 64 Handicap.

I Am A Winner was a heavily backed favourite when an easy winner of a 900m Newcastle Maiden on August 26 before a luckless fourth at Hawkesbury on September 11. The 4yo was poleaxed and put out of business 200m from home at Hawkesbury.

Collett will also be aboard the lightly raced I Am Brave ($2.90 fav) when the I Am Invincible mare resumes in the 1200m Dailey Family Funerals Benchmark 64 Handicap.

Collett rode the mare when an easy winner on debut at the Scone Cup Carnival on May 16 and she went to the paddock after finishing midfield in a Rosehill Benchmark 72 on May 31.

I Am Brave has had two recent trials and caught the eye in the recent trial at Hawkesbury when she stormed home down the outside under little pressure.

Paul Perry’s Uncle Harry ($4.60 fav) indicated he was ready to win another race with a close fourth over 1500m at Newcastle on September 19.

He is a winner on the track and the step up to 1850m in the A-Plus Contracting & Poly Welding Provincial Benchmark 64 Handicap is ideal.

Excitement is growing in the Newcastle-Hunter region as the Club's The Newcastle Herald Hunter $1m Group 2 event is only six weeks away.

The raceday carries prizemoney of $2.59m and in a coup for NJC, the richly talented entertainer Jon Stevens (former lead singer of Noiseworks and at one time INXS) will perform on the track after the final event.

View the final fields with full form & race replays for Newcastle here