Winners keep rolling for Team Teal

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk 

The Teal Pants fund-raiser has got off to a successful and lucrative start, with more than $5000 raised so far.

The annual campaign is all about increasing awareness about ovarian cancer, and raising funds towards research. Between February 1 and mid March money is raised for the cause every time a female driver, wearing the teal pants, wins a race.

The money comes from contributions from Harness Racing New Zealand ($100), the clubs ($100), individual sponsors, public donations and more.

So far there have 17 wins, from 10 different drivers.

Sarah O'Reilly and Kerryn Tomlinson lead the way with three each, followed by Alicia Harrison, Gemma Thornley, and Sheree Tomlinson with two.

The other winners have been Kim Butt, Alana Cameron, Crystal Hackett, Leah Hibell, and Olivia Thornley.

Butt, Cameron and O'Reilly all had wins at the Amberley Trotting Club's meeting at Rangiora yesterday, while Hibell was successful at Hawera on Sunday, as was Alicia Harrison with a double.

She won Heat 4 of the Revell Douglas junior drivers' series with No Added Sugar and then took out the day's feature, the South Taranaki Club Hawera Cup with Mimi E Coco.

Mimi E Coco was a late scratching on the opening day of the meeting on Friday when she was facing the wrong way when the tapes were released but on Sunday she got away clearly from her 30m mark with Harrison finding the one-one at the 800. She went away to win by more than a length.

"She's a free-going mare," since Harrison, "and she was just jogging."

Both winners are trained by her employers, Steve and Amanda Telfer and Hayden Cullen in South Auckland. The Telfers were the country's top trainers last year, with Cullen joining them on January 1.

"It was probably the most sucessful day I've had since I started working there."

Harrison moved from Arna Donnelly's Cambridge stables to be part of the Stonewall operation in December.

"It is busy.. there are so many horses. There are over 70 there."

And that means early starts - "I am up at 4.45 am" and lots of hours.

But being part of such a big and powerful stable has its benefits.

"There are plenty of nice horses so I'm looking forward to the opportunties that brings."

And they could come as early as Cambridge on Thursday night.

For Team Teal it's been a highly successful opening seven days.

With the 17 wins as well as donations on course and a $1000 donation from Mitre 10 Westport the total currently stands at $5600.