Leading Sydney jockey Glyn Schofield has been suspended for five weeks for failing to take all reasonable and permissible measures when riding Number One Gun in the ATC Membership On Sale Handicap (1400m) at the Randwick Kensington track on December 20.
Glyn Schofield will appeal a five week suspension handed down by Racing New South Wales stewards this afternoon. Photo by: Taron Clarke
Schofield set an extremely quick tempo on Number One Gun in the early stages of the race and opened up a lead of almost six lengths at the 600 metre mark but the Mossman gelding tired badly in the final stages of the race and was caught by Rowie, who went on to record a two and a half lengths win.
Racing New South Wales stewards reported last Friday that Number One Gun ran the first 1000 metres in 56.62 seconds, just outside the track record for the 1000 metres course, and his 800 metre sectional time was 20 lengths quicker than the average over the 1400 metre course at the Randwick Kensington track since it was reopened in October last year.
Schofield was charged and found guilty under rule of racing AR135 (b) and has been rubbed out of racing from Sunday January 12 to Sunday February 16; with Racing New South Wales Deputy Chief Steward Greg Rudolph indicating that a rider of Schofield’s experience should have taken more care in controlling the pace of his mount.
“Whilst you have tendered evidence that you are decelerating, the stewards still find the pace was unsustainable,” Rudolph said at the hearing today.
“After passing the 600m we are satisfied that you did commence to apply pressure to your mount by riding your horse along where clearly a rider of your experience, a more conservative approach to hold Number One Gun together was the only reasonable measure given the pace of the race to that point to give the horse full opportunity to win.
“In considering the ride blameworthy, stewards consider the limitations of the horse, the characteristics of the horse, which you knew.
“You knew the distance of the race, and the stewards find that the tactics adopted could have only reasonably and logically ended in the result of the horse being physically spent.”
Schofield’s penalty was discounted because he had not previously offended under this rule in his three decade career as a jockey and the South African has already lodged an appeal and been given a stay of proceedings until his appeal is held.
A date for the appeal has not yet been set.
