Bond 007 mates will be shaken and stirred if The Inflictor wins Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap on Saturday

Seven close mates are living the dream with a runner in the Stradbroke, and some members of their Bond 007 syndicate are hoping for a massive payday after backing it at $201.

The members of syndicate Bond 007 will be both shaken and stirred if The Inflictor can complete a fairytale story and win Saturday’s $3m Stradbroke Handicap.

The seven mates are living the dream, with the four-year-old gelding making the Stradbroke field after last December winning the $300,000 The Gateway, which offers a golden ticket into Queensland’s premier race.

Some members of Bond 007 had placed bets on The Inflictor at $201 for the Stradbroke after his The Gateway victory and will collect a small fortune if jockey Cejay Graham can win her first Group 1 on Saturday at Eagle Farm.

• PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet’s team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW!

And that’s not even mentioning the $1.8m cheque which will be shared among connections of the winning horse.

“We’re just pinching ourselves that we’re even here really,” syndicate member Jim Matthews said at the Breakfast at the Stars at Eagle Farm on a chilly Brisbane morning on Tuesday.

“It’s a dream just to have a runner in a Group 1. Whatever he does on the weekend is a bonus but we think he’ll run well.

“It’s the biggest race in Queensland. It’s crazy to even think about it.”

• ‘Pressure is your friend’: Cejay’s tip to conjure Stradbroke fairytale

The Bond 007 members are good mates from way back, having played and coached together for the

Moreton Bay AFL club (formerly Caboolture Lions) some 20 years ago.

Bond 007 members Jim Matthews, Greg Deeks, Shane Pleming and Kurt Turner at Doomben after The Inflictor’s last-start victory on May 24.

Just like The Inflictor’s trainer Craig Cousins, they’re Aussie battlers riding a wave of emotion built on a passion for horse racing and a love of the punt.

“We all played footy together 15 or 20 years ago and everyone was into a punt on a Saturday,” Matthews said.

“Over time we said ‘why don’t we chip in and get into horse racing?’

“We started with seven in the syndicate which is why we called it Bond 007.”

• Pride taking on Stradbroke history with Private Eye

Asked about the wild celebrations if The Inflictor can win the biggest race of his career, syndicate leader Shane Pleming joked that it could be a heart-stopping affair.

“I don’t know what will happen. One of us already has a heart problem but the rest of us, we might all drop dead in the stands,” Pleming said with a laugh.

“But look, he’s a stunning horse and he keeps getting better. It’s easy to train a good horse and Craig has done a great job because he looks magnificent.

“We’re right in it because they’re all talking about the favourite (War Machine) but we ran just as good a time carrying 61.5kg and he carried only 56.5kg on the same day at Doomben (on May 24).”

The Inflictor winning The Gateway at Eagle Farm last December. Picture: Trackside Photography

Hobby trainer and truck driver Cousins, who only has three horses in work, would deliver one of the great Stradbroke stories if he can win on Saturday.

“He’s just a decent bloke,” syndicate member John Jeffrey said.

“He’s a battler and happy to admit it but he does a good job because the horse always looks well and he races well.

“It’d be a fairytale, there’s no doubt about it. Two years ago we were out at the Sunny Coast, up in Toowoomba, out at Gatton, all the provincial tracks and now we’re in a Group 1.”

Originally published as Bond 007 mates will be shaken and stirred if The Inflictor wins Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap on Saturday