It was a blast from the past when local trainer Daryl Cannon joined forces with forgotten jockey Stan Tsaikos to win with Mambo Italiano at Colac last Saturday.
Cannon and Tsaikos teamed up to win a swag of features in the late 1990s including the 1998 Warrnambool Wangoom Handicap with M’selle De Enz before injuries took their toll on Tsaikos.
“It’s great to see Stan back riding,” Cannon said. “He’s a very underrated jockey – always has been. 
“He’s working his backside off in an endeavour to get more rides. It’s just great to team up with him for another winner. 
“We had a lot of success in the late 1990s with horses like M’selle De Enz and Bourbonstreetblues. I hope his luck has turned the corner.”
Cannon, a former jumps jockey, said Mambo Italiano had deserved a change in luck in Saturday’s Colac Herald 0-58 Handicap (1100m).
“She’s had no luck on a few occasions,” he said. 
“She has the ability to run on or off the pace. Stan decided to run her on the pace on Saturday because of the way the track was racing. 
“Mambo Italiano has won two of her 13 runs and notched up five minor placings but with a bit of luck she could have won four or five races. 
“I’m quietly confident that she will run out a strong 1400 metres,” he added
Mambo Italiano took her stake earnings past $37,000 with her win at Colac.
Purcell halfway there
Aaron Purcell hit the ground running when he took over training Ciaron Maher’s horses on October 1 and his good run looks like continuing until he hands the horses back to his good mate on April 1.
Maher was suspended for six months over ownership-related offences involving five horses including Group 1 winner Azkadellia.
Purcell said the first three months of training ex-Maher horses at Caulfield while also running his own stables at Warrnambool had gone quickly and kept him extremely busy. 
Purcell has won Group 1 races with Merchant Navy and Aloisia among a number of features over the three months.
“It’s been like a whirlwind,” he said. “I’ve been very lucky that I’ve got great staff at Caulfield and Warrnambool and taken over well bred horses from Ciaron. 
“I know I wouldn’t have been able to do it without great staff. 
“I try and manage my time between Caulfield and Warrnambool but sometimes it gets a bit difficult. We’ve just got to keep the winners going.”
Yearling sales in the new year will occupy much of Purcell’s time as he strives to find the next Group 1 winner for the stable.
“It’s a team effort trying to find the next star horse,” he said. “We put together shortlists of all the yearlings that we inspect and they’re all rated before we attend the sales.”
Teo on a roll
Former Brauer College student Teo Nugent is making every post a winner in his career as an apprentice jockey. 
Nugent outrode his four-kilogram claim and notched his fifth winner when he rode Tris to victory in a restricted race at the Colac meeting.
The 19-year-old said he was excited with how his career was progressing.
“I’ve been riding for just on two months and to ride five winners is better than where I thought I’d be at this time,” he said. 
“I’ve got to thank a lot of people who have been helping me including Darren Gauci and Matt Pumpa. They’ve really helped with my riding style and how to read a race.”
Calling all hoops
Jockeys who have ridden in the Western District are invited to a reunion of old and young hoops at the Koroit Cup meeting on January 7. 
The reunion, organised by the Warrnambool Racing Club, will be the first in more than 20 years.
Former jockey Terry Boswell is one of many looking forward to a day of meeting old pals and reminiscing about their achievements in the saddle.
Boswell won the 1970 Warrnambool Cup on Princess Camillo.