1 week ago
22
Craig Kerry
May 7, 2026 — 5:00pm
At 78, Gosford-based group 1 winner Neil Ward says he’s had enough of training.
“They’ve burnt me out. Owners took their toll on me eventually. They said they would,” Ward said with a slight chuckle.
“I’m retired now. When they go for a spell, I go for a spell. I’m enjoying life now.”
A loyal group of owners, though, and their connection to broodmare War Empress, have kept Ward in the game, and in the hunt on Saturday for a victory on his home track’s biggest day of the year.
Ward has had just one horse in work, Stratafy, for the past couple of years, and she lines up in the $200,000 Thunder Thousand benchmark 78 handicap (1000m) on the standalone The Coast program.
The four-year-old, coming off a provincial benchmark 68 win at Wyong over the distance, has four victories and six placings across 18 starts and was $26 (TAB) for the rise in class.
Ward, though, a group 1 Epsom Handicap and Ampol Stakes winner with Riverdale in 1984, believed she would be competitive. Winona Costin took her to her last-start win on April 16 and she has the ride on Saturday from gate eight.
“She goes all right,” Ward said.
“She’s done well, she’s a 68 in a 78, but she loves Gosford, loves the 1000m, and she’ll be right.
“For a $200,000 race, it’s not a hard race. Take about three chances out of it, and it’s not a hard field.
“She’s a short-course horse, and she’s won there.”
Stratafy’s mother, War Empress, won four races, all at Gosford. Ward has also had success with her other progeny, Emperor Harada and Noble Empress, and her brother, War Emperor.
“It’s out of our mare and that family has been very good to me. They’ve all won,” said Ward who started training at age 21 at Canterbury before moving to Gosford in the 1980s.
“The one before was this was the sister. She won two races then done a tendon. She was pretty good. This one’s brother won about five races, too.
“She’s the only horse I work now. I don’t worry about other horses any more. I own part of her and we’ve been part of this syndicate for 20 years. They owned horses with me when I was training full-time.”
Ward has tasted feature race success at Gosford long before the provincial gained an annual city standalone meeting in 2021. His “good horse” Riverdale claimed the Gosford Cup in 1985 and was third in the race the following year.
“It would be nice,” he said of a win on Saturday.
“But put it this way, she’s guaranteed prizemoney because they pay back to 10th.”
Bjorn Baker-trained Compensation was a $2.10 favourite after he backed up an 1100m Rosehill midweek maiden win with a front-running domination over 1000m at Randwick two weeks ago.
