Lefoe and Gillett to continue Darwin Cup assault

ALICE Springs trainers have already tasted their fair share of success during the Darwin Cup Carnival and Lisa Lefoe and Leanne Gillett hope to continue the trend.

Female horse trainers Lisa Lefoe and Leanne Gillett from Alice Springs are in town for the Darwin Cup carnival.

ALICE Springs trainers have already tasted their fair share of success during the Darwin Cup Carnival and Lisa Lefoe and Leanne Gillett hope to continue the trend.

For prominent Red Centre trainer Lefoe, 39, heading to the Top End with horses from her stable has been a regular habit for the past six years.

However, for Gillett, 37, fielding horses at the Northern Territory’s biggest horse racing extravaganza is a new ­experience.

Lefoe, who trained 50 winners for the first time in a ­season when Seal No More won the Unibet WFA (1200m) at Fannie Bay on July 19, ­remains hopeful the four-year-old can pull off a remarkable double by winning Saturday’s Palmerston Sprint (1200m).

In May, Seal No More won the Pioneer Sprint during the Alice Springs Cup Carnival, so Lefoe is on the verge of landing the two feature sprinting events in the Territory in the same season.

“I had a lot of success with Periduki, who won a Pioneer Sprint, but to win the Palmerston Sprint with Seal No More would be my biggest win,” Lefoe said. “It’s not easy to win a race in Darwin during the Cup Carnival as the quality of opposition is always tough.

“There’s a lot of good horses in Darwin at this time of year, but I wouldn’t be bringing horses up here if I didn’t think they were a chance.”

When three-year-old gelding Hand In Glove made it three straight wins at Pioneer Park on July 20, Gillett decided to bring him north where he will start in the Top End Consulting Handicap (1100m) at Fannie Bay tomorrow.

“Apart from Hand In Glove, I have also brought up a few other horses to Darwin, which is exciting because it’s my first Cup Carnival where I’m starting horses as a trainer,” Gillett said. “My husband Terry is also a trainer and he has brought horses to Darwin as well.

“It could be interesting on Wednesday as Hand In Glove will be up against Terry’s horse Best A Man Can Get and then my horse Concini will match it with Terry’s horse Santa Maura in the Cup.”

Originally from Strathalbyn in South Australia, Lefoe moved to Alice Springs in 1999 and has been training for the past 14 years where she has achieved unrivalled success.

Gillett, who hails from Blyth in South Australia, moved to Central Australia with her family when she was 10 before moving to Sydney in 2007. She returned to Alice Springs two years ago.

“Periduki finished second in the Palmerston Sprint in 2008 and it would be good to win the race with Seal No More, but it won’t be easy against the likes of Action Again and The Thief,” Lefoe said.

Gillett, a qualified veterinarian nurse, who only returned to training last December, was the first female to win the trainer’s premiership in Alice Springs when she landed 36 winners for the 2005-06 ­season — her debut season.

Lefoe, who is set to win her fifth Alice Springs trainer’s premiership, won her first title in 2008-09 and took the next three premierships before Terry Gillett claimed the honour last ­season.

Lisa and Leanne admit training can be demanding with the long hours and early starts, but added that the ­rewards were priceless and neither were likely to give it up anytime soon. Lefoe’s husband Gary is a former jockey, and when he is not training, ­Gillett’s husband Terry still rides at Pioneer Park.