‘Why would you take him off?’: Nathan Doyle banks on Ash Morgan’s partnership with Private Harry in Sunlight
Ash Morgan and Nathan Doyle go back a long way and the two are looking to pull off a $3m heist in the Sunlight slot race at the Gold Coast on Saturday with unbeaten colt Private Harry.
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Nathan Doyle and Ash Morgan formed an association well before Private Harry bounced on the scene and the Newcastle trainer is backing in loyalty to prevail in the $3m Sunlight slot race at the Gold Coast on Saturday.
The Welsh-born jockey was cutting his teeth at non-TAB meetings in New South Wales when Doyle was starting out as a trainer and has been a trusted go-to man in the saddle throughout his career.
Excitement machine Private Harry is unbeaten in three starts with Morgan in the saddle and Doyle declaring the hoop deserved his spot among Australia’s best at the Gold Coast when they race for $3m.
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“Why would you take him off? This game is pretty quick to rip someone off when they’ve done nothing wrong so we didn’t see a reason not to give him a go,” Doyle said.
“He has done a terrific job and has done nothing wrong on the horse, he has always put him in a good spot and he knows all his idiosyncrasies.
“I first met Ash when he was living in Scone and I first went out training.
“Ash had just moved out here from Wales and he was riding at non-TABs and those meetings just to get a ride because no one knew him.
“He couldn’t get a crack in the UK because there are that many jockeys there, so he ended up over here and gave it a crack.”
Private Harry arrived at the goldy in great order this morning @ndoyleracing@B2BThoroughbred@mmsnippetspic.twitter.com/7gvxLrnELn
— Kurrinda Bloodstock (@KBloodstockNSW) January 1, 2025
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Winning the Sunlight would provide a shot in the arm for both Doyle and Morgan, with the trainer saying Private Harry was the most precocious horse he had had anything to do with in his short career so far.
The set weights conditions of the race have the colt giving Golden Slipper winner Lady Of Camelot a 2kg advantage despite a 35-point gap in the ratings, but Doyle said that was what excited him heading into Saturday.
“It is what it is, it’s where he has to be if he (Private Harry) is going to be any good, he needs to overcome the fact he’s giving her so much,” Doyle said.
“At the end of the day it is still restricted to three-year-olds and you see it a lot of the time in those three-year-old plate races, there are huge gaps in the ratings points and the top-rated horse doesn’t always win.
“Everyone loves an underdog that is coming through the ranks keen to knock off the top rater.
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“It is a three-year-old restricted race that is bringing formlines from everywhere, Lady Of Camelot is coming off The Everest and my bloke is coming out of a Benchmark 72.
“There are horses on the way up and on the way down, so everyone has a different opinion, which is what makes it interesting.”
Private Harry ($6.50) is poised to get the run of the race from barrier four, with the colt showing exceptional speed so far in his short career.
Doyle said he had the ability to kick off a hot speed if the opportunity presented itself.
“The gate is a big benefit to him and the way it maps, there is speed inside and outside, so he can punch forward and make them work, if he has to take a sit off that, that’s fine or he can take it up if nothing else is,” he said.
“He is untapped, he has the most beautiful action and good racecraft, he bangs out of the machines and puts himself into the race, he travels well and takes bad luck out of the equation, it is his best asset.”
Originally published as ‘Why would you take him off?’: Nathan Doyle banks on Ash Morgan’s partnership with Private Harry in Sunlight
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