Racing: Two-year ban may end trainer's career

The career of New Zealand's most controversial racing trainer, Geoff Small, is in tatters after he was disqualified for two years in Australia yesterday.

Small was disqualified from any involvement in racing of any code effective immediately after a hearing in Sydney.

He was found guilty of having allowed the banned substance tranexamic acid to be administered to his champion pacer Changeover before his win in the A$100,000 ($122,746) Len Smith Mile at Menangle, outside Sydney, in April.

But Small has appealed against the penalty and if granted a stay of proceedings could be allowed to resume training today.

But effective from yesterday Small is banned from training or owning horses, being on a licensed property - even the farm on which he lives - and entering a racetrack.

His application for a stay of proceedings is expected to be considered by the NSW Racing Appeals Tribunal today and indications from senior Sydney officials are that it is likely to be granted.

That would allow Small to train his team, which contains some of New Zealand's best pacers, until his appeal is heard.

But Australian racing has a history of dealing with appeals more quickly than the New Zealand industry so Small's appeal would be likely to be heard in the next month or six weeks.

Getting his penalty reduced to a fine would be almost unprecedented so the best Small could probably hope for would be a reduction to a one-year disqualification.

That could effectively end his training career in New Zealand and see horses like New Zealand Cup winner Changeover and Tintin In America sent to new trainers.

The disqualification comes after three years of battles between Small and harness racing officials on both sides of the Tasman.

Last season he pleaded guilty to three separate charges involving prohibited substances in New Zealand, although two of those were considered at the minor end of the scale.

The other also involved Changeover, a positive to caffeine, which saw him disqualified from the Sires' Stakes Final at Addington three years ago.

Small also had his race driving licence suspended for four months for what many viewed as team driving in the rich Sales Series Pace at Alexandra Park three years ago.

His positive swab history played heavily against Small yesterday.

"We take a dim view of repeat offenders in prohibited substance cases," said NSW chairman of stewards Michael Beattie.

Beattie admitted the disqualification was at the more severe end of the spectrum, especially compared with a New South Wales thoroughbred trainer who was recently fined A$6000 for a positive to tranexamic acid.

"But traditionally penalties in harness racing have been tougher than the galloping code, for reasons I can't explain," said Beattie.