Description
Most current racegoers would not have heard of Eric Connolly, whose deeds in his prime filled the pages of the metropolitan daily newspapers. He is distinguished from the present day trainer by the fact that he trained horses that he owned, who won most of the prestigious races on the Australian Racing calendar. He would frequently keep a horse in work for many months before producing them on the racetrack sporting Connolly’s colors, red jacket black sleeves, regularly instilled fear in the hearts of bookmakers.
From humble beginnings Connolly rose to become in real terms the largest punter in the history of the Australian turf. Following a major health scare in 1929 his punting skills deserted him and he died in relative obscurity in 1944. For a period of in excess of thirty years Connolly derived a comfortable living from the turf, a feat few have achieved, despite having gifted much of his fortune to worthy causes and needy individuals. His generosity knew no bounds.
He coined the phrase “money lost nothing lost courage lost everything lost” which is a relevant to punters today as it was one hundred years ago.
Paperback, 224pp, 2017
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