Top apprentices set up base in Victoria

Queensland apprentice Bradley Wallace will extend his stay in Melbourne for another twelve months while top Sydney apprentice Chad Schofield has transferred to trainer David Hayes for a three months trial.

Wallace had decided to stay with Tony Noonan after spending the last three months with the Mornington trainer since moving down from the Gold Coast.

Noonan has been impressed with Wallace who has managed to ride ten winners from eighty-nine rides since setting up based in Victoria.

“I have been extremely pleased with his progress and he has impressed us as a natural lightweight with a good work ethic,” Noonan said.

One of Wallace’s biggest wins in Queensland was an emotional victory when he rose Musashi Of Mieko to victory in the $100,000 XXXX Toowoomba Cup (2100m) for his father, popular trainer John Wallace.

Last season’s Sydney champion apprentice Chad Schofield has also moved south of the border and has teamed up the powerful David Hayes Lindsay Park complex at Euroa.

“Chad is a tremendous talent, an outstanding rider with a bright future.” Hayes said.

“He reminds me a lot of a young Craig Williams, it will be exciting to see him further develop at Lindsay Park Euroa.”

Schofield jumped to the opportunity to join the set-up at Lindsay Park and is looking forward to the tremendous learning experience which will only benefit his fledging riding career.

“David Hayes spoke to my dad about it and offered me the opportunity to come down and obviously I grabbed it with both hands,” Schofield said.

“The main thing is about getting more experience, just to ride on different tracks against different riders and try and learn as much as I can.”

“Hopefully I can ride as many winners for as many different trainers as I can and get my name out there for later on.”

Shcofield, the son top Sydney based jockey Glyn Schofield, accepted his apprentice’s trophy at the New South Wales Racing Awards Night with a speech way above his years and has settled in well at Lindsay Park.

The lightweight apprentice was able to ride a winner at his first day riding for Hayes when he saluted on Encoded at Echuca on August 20 and followed that up by scoring on three year old Prisoner Of War at Werribee three days later.

“My first meeting was at Echuca on last Monday and I was lucky enough to get a winner and get off to a winning start, so I’m enjoying it so far,” Schofield said.

“Hopefully I can ride a few more winners and get the ball rolling again.”

Under the care of Rosehill trainer David Payne, Schofield secured the Sydney apprentice’s title with thirty-nine metropolitan winners for the season, fourteen ahead of Sam Clipperton and the youngster has also ridden a winner in Melbourne when he scored on Red Typhon for trainer Robert Smerdon at Caulfield over the Easter long weekend.

About The Author

Mark Mazzaglia

Mark is a passionate journalist with a life-time involvement in the racing industry. He spent many years as an analyst and form expert at the Courier Mail and also has hands-on experience working with some of Queensland’s top trainers.