Racing: Eales trained 1352 NZ winners over five decades

By PAUL GUEORGIEFF

Patience is the word that personified Manawatu horse trainer Noel Eales, who died yesterday at 73 following a long battle against prostate cancer.

Eales was always the one to adopt a patient policy with his horses. He did not race horses extensively as two-year-olds and it was not unusual for him to produce a horse to win first-up from a long break with injury.

He was a great believer in time being the best healer.

Manawatu breeder Gerald Fell, of Fairdale Stud, echoed the master trainer label for Eales, who trained at Awapuni in Palmerston North.

"He was a master trainer, one of the old school," Fell said.

"He will certainly be a huge loss to the industry and to Awapuni in particular. He has been the senior statesman of Awapuni for quite a while."

One of the horses the Fells had trained by Eales was top mare Tall Poppy, who won three times at group one level.

"It was his patience and skill that made her what she was - no question about that," Fell said.

"She wasn't particularly robust but she required his patience and skill to make her."

Such was the perception of Eales that is was likely some owners would not have placed a horse with him because they would have considered him too patient.

But there was also no doubt he was a master horseman.

At the time of his death, after 50 years as a trainer, he was fifth on the list of most New Zealand careers wins with a tally of 1352 training victories.

In 2001 he gained the award for outstanding contribution in racing excellence and in the New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing's annual report it said: "Noel Eales, the man who has given a new meaning to the word patience, the great stickler for detail and renowned for his uncompromising work ethic, deserved the honour."

Among his best wins were the 1986 Caulfield Cup with Lomondy, the 1997 Wellington Cup with Ed and 1993 Mackinnon Stakes in Melbourne with The Phantom.

The Wellington track of Trentham was his favourite followed by Awapuni and Hastings. He has trained more winners at the three tracks than anybody else.

His favourite Trentham race was the Thorndon Mile. He won the race six times, including the first running of the race with Starborough in 1962. His other five winners were Fun On The Run (1990), Calm Harbour (1993), Happiness (1996), Surface (1999) and Tall Poppy (2001).

Another race synonymous with the Eales name was the International Stakes run at Te Rapa in Hamilton.

Eales won it six times, of which three were with his great galloper Commissionaire who won the race three years consecutively up to 1986. His other three winners of the race were Fun On The Run (1991), The Phantom (1994) and Greene Street (2003).

Commissionaire was the champion weight-for-age performer of the 1982-83 season. In total the horse won 21 races - 13 of them at weight-for-age - from 65 starts. He also had 26 placings and had amassed $304,640 in stakes when he was retired as a nine-year-old in 1987.

At Awapuni, he trained the winner of both the Manawatu Cup and the Awapuni Gold Cup five times and the Manawatu Challenge Stakes six times.

Another top performer for Eales was Orchidra (18 wins) along with Calm Harbour, Varnamo, Lady Aloof, Silver Elm, Surface, Fun On The Run, Tall Poppy, Bandon, Orchidra, Regal Chief, Gold Bullion and Lone Hand.

Eales never topped a trainers' premiership, generally because he was always content with a mid-sized stable but won the strike-rate title four times before it was withdrawn.

He totalled 19 wins at group one level but as the group rating system did not start in New Zealand until the 1970s his tally would otherwise undoubtedly have been higher.

Eales started training in 1954 and his first official winner was at an Ashhurst meeting in 1956. Four years later he moved to Awapuni in Palmerston North where he started to rack up the wins.

A number of years later he suffered ill-health which saw him give training away and it wasn't until 1973 that he returned after assisting New Zealand trainer Syd Brown on an Australian campaign.

On his comeback it was Brown's Woodville stables that he rented and he remained in Woodville for nearly 10 years before moving back to Awapuni where he had been until his death.

Eales' funeral is to be held on Friday. He is survived by wife Christine, sons David and Matthew and daughter Dianne.

Matthew Eales joined in a training partnership with Noel a couple of years ago.


Master trainer

Fifth on the all-time trainers' premiership.

Trained 19 group one winners.

Prepared Lomondy to win the 1986 Caulfield Cup.

- NZPA