Tasracing calls on Director of Racing to act after Yole wins Supreme Court injunction

Tasracing has called on Tasmania’s Director of Racing to consider his powers to deal with issues in the Murrihy report, after trainer Ben Yole won a court injunction against being warned off.

Lake Eyre (Mark Yole) brings up trainer Ben Yole's 100th winner for the season in Hobart. Picture: TASRACING

Tasracing boss Andrew Jenkins has called on Tasmania’s Director of Racing to consider his powers to deal with issues raised in the Murrihy report, after four participants who recently had their racetrack bans overturned won a Supreme Court injunction temporarily preventing further action against them.

Mr Jenkins said the Friday afternoon order made by Justice Robert Pearce meant that Tasracing was unable to prevent harness racing identities Ben Yole, Tim Yole, Nathan Ford, and Mitchell Ford from entering racetracks under its control, until the matter returned to court for substantive argument on 21 March.

“This is a disappointing outcome but Tasracing will, of course, comply with the decision of the Supreme Court,” Mr Jenkins said.

“I will, as a matter of urgency, write to the Director of Racing encouraging him to consider powers available to him under the Act to address the serious issues raised in the Murrihy report.”

Ben Yole.

The ruling allows Ben Yole to attend harness racing meets this weekend at Hobart and Burnie, where he has runners entered in multiple races.

On February 2, Tasracing banned those adversely named in the Murrihy Report into the harness racing industry from attending the state’s racetracks — including leading trainer Ben Yole.

That ban was subsequently overturned by the Racing Appeals Board.

Former NSW Chief Steward Ray Murrihy, who was commissioned to investigate media reports of team driving and race fixing by Mr Yole’s stables, found multiple breaches of the rules of racing and acts of animal cruelty.

It concluded that the handling of complaints by the Office of Racing Integrity was “stilted, lacking cohesion and often not attributing the degree of seriousness necessary to the matters before them.”

In the Supreme Court on Friday, the applicants, represented by Melbourne-based barrister Damian Sheales, brought an application seeking an order for Tasracing being restrained from issuing warning-off notices under the Racing Regulation Act.

Justice Pearce ruled that until further order, Tasracing be restrained from issuing warning-off notices to each of the four applicants.

Justice Pearce directed that by 11 March, the applicants provide the court with particulars of the grounds on which they allege that Tasracing is operating outside its jurisdiction in issuing warning-off notices, and set down for a hearing for the matter for Thursday 21 March.

Tasracing was represented at Friday’s Supreme Court hearing by Michael O’Farrell SC.

Director of Racing, Robin Thompson, said that an independent panel of interstate harness racing and integrity experts had been appointed to address the issues raised in the Murrihy report using the standard procedural fairness and natural justice-based process.

“This process will investigate the issues and provide an opportunity for parties to respond to them which may or may not result in sanctions according to provisions of the harness racing rules and Racing Regulation Act,” Mr Thompson said.

Originally published as Tasracing calls on Director of Racing to act after Yole wins Supreme Court injunction