Latest News

By Ray Hickson

Trainer Danielle Seib is hoping talented galloper Associate can post an overdue Highway win at Randwick on Saturday and help solve a small dilemma about what races she should target in 2025.

Trainer Danielle Seib (Pic: Bradley Photos).

The five-year-old, a winner of three from 16 starts, is still in contention for the Country Championships series and with his Nowra Cup third placing he’s already eligible for the Little Dance.

Nowra is the host venue for the South East Country Championships, staged on February 23, and Seib said a win, on the back-up from a luckless last start second, in the TAB Highway (1600m) will tell her a lot about what the future may hold.

“You’d just like to see him put one away. I’ve been looking to get him to a Randwick mile and here we are so it’s ideal,’’ she said.

“Nowra doesn’t really suit him, do you go there knowing you’re going to run a good race but could get beaten by the track. I think we get through this Saturday and make a decision.

“We could bring him back and target some Country Cups and the Big Dance.”

Associate, $5.50 with TAB on Tuesday, contested the Country Championships Final in 2024, having won his way in via the Southern Wild Card in March (which was his last win), and finished midfield behind Asgarda.

What Seib is seeing this preparation is a more accomplished horse, a touch braver, and one that’s relishing his racing – all he needs now is to convert it into a win.

“He got a bit casual for a few funs,’’ she said.

“He’s gaining confidence again, he’s had some issues in the past and he hasn’t had a lot of racing so this is the first time we've been able to race him consistently and have him in that right zone.

“I think the penny’s dropped with him now. You watch the Final and he was caught in the middle, had his head up and didn’t race tractably.

“You fast forward to that run at Wagga and he took very tight gaps moving strongly through the field, the old version wouldn’t have taken gaps like that.”

It’s safe to say Associate should have won the Ted Ryder Cup (1675m) at Wagga on Christmas Eve.

He ran up behind a wall of horses early in the straight and wasn’t able to get across heels until they neared the 100m and he charged into second beaten half a length by Baledon.

“As soon as they shifted onto the Riverside the track was going to be our biggest opposition,’’ she said.

“Even given the run he had you just get that little bit more time to balance up and go through the gears on the longer straight on the main track.

“He’s flying, he’s running really good races. He has that electric turn of foot back, I thought he helped himself a bit more out of the gates, and I think he is starting to switch back on a bit.

“It’s good to have him back racing consistently.”

Associate runs second at Wagga on December 24

Seib is using apprentice Zac Wadick’s 2kg claim to offset the gelding’s 61.5kg and she’d like to think that he can be within striking range when they balance for the run home.

“From the better gate we should hopefully be midfield but you can’t have him out of his comfort zone,’’ she said.

“Getting too far back with too much work to do, and particularly in Highways with big fields, that’s got him beaten more than anything.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday's Randwick meeting