By Kobie O’Brien
TONY GOLLAN - ROBBIE FRADD
Win: 25%
Place: 59%
This superstar partnership between Queensland’s number-one trainer and veteran Robbie Fradd has fired this season, with Fradd currently riding at a one-in-four strike rate for the stable with 8 winners from 32 starts. Both trainer and jockey are enjoying a good run, with Gollan sitting on 74 wins for the season, sitting in the top 10 Australia-wide. Fradd sits second in the Queensland metro rankings with 55 wins for season 2017-18.
MATTHEW DUNN - JEFF LLOYD
Win: 35%
Place: 55%
Almost everything Jeff Lloyd touches for Matthew Dunn turns to gold, with the state's number-one jockey in the money more than half the time for the stable. Currently third in Australia for most wins this season, the legendary hoop sits behind only William Pike and Brenton Avdulla. Lloyd has steered 14 winners for Dunn in 2017-18, placing in another 8 from 40 starts. Also enjoying plenty of success, Matthew Dunn has had 57 wins this season.
ROBERT HEATHCOTE - MATTHEW MCGILLIVRAY
Win: 34%
Place: 50%
McGillivray has placed in 13 from 26 starts for the Robert Heathcote stable, winning nine. The 26-year-old is one Queensland's in-form jockeys this season with 66 winners, 36 coming in town with a quarter of those for Heathcote. The former Roma apprentice also sits in the top-10 in Australia for most wins this year, aided by the Heathcote yard which is closing in on raising the bat for a half century of wins for 2017-18. McGillivray has 2 rides for the stable this weekend – Don’t Leave Me Out in race 2 at Doomben and Street Comic in race 6 at the Sunshine Coast on Sunday.
ALWYN BAILEY - WANDERSON D'AVILA
Win: 27%
Place: 59%
Queensland’s number-one country jockey, Wanderson D'Avila boasts plenty of similarities to fellow countryman, 'Magic Man' Joao Moreira. D’Avila has steered 54 winners so-far this season, 14 of those at Alwyn Bailey’s training base in Cairns, striking at 29% in Far North Queensland. D’Avila has been successful in six from 22 rides for the Bailey stable, placing in a further seven to take his strike rate near 60%. D’Avila in Cairns for Alwyn Bailey is perhaps a licence to print money, with seven of the trainer’s 14 winners coming in Cairns with D’Avila riding six.
SHANE SIGVART - JUSTIN STANLEY
Win: 50%
Place: 83%
Look out for Justin Stanley on one of Shane Sigvart’s horses, because there is a massive chance it will be somewhere near the front. Stanley has failed to place in just two rides for Sigvart this year, winning six of 12 and placing in another four. Recently notching up 50 wins for the season, Stanley sits in the top-10 for Australian country jockeys, well supported by Sigvart, who has trained 21 winners from 60 starters.
LES KELLY - RYAN PLUMB
Win: 41%
Place: 70%
It's possibly the best-trainer jockey partnership in the country. Ryan Plumb has an unbelievable record for trainer Les Kelly this season, riding 25 winners from 60 starts, placing in another 17. Twenty-five of Plumb’s 39 wins for 2017-2018 have come for Kelly, who has this season trained 31 winners from 103 starts. The pair will combine again in Race 1 at the Gold Coast this Saturday with Plumb taking the ride on Warface.
