Gloucester Park Oncourse.Harness & Greyhounds

Bushbookie

Qld Bookie here walked down to Gloucester Park for big race tonight . Jesus dissapointed . Best viewing track in Australia with perfect location but no atmosphere . No Xmas parties . Poor old bookie barely wrote up 500 dollars hold after 3 races . Watching him now after race 3 and no ones bet with him for 20 minutes . If they ever spend one more cent upgrading any public facilities here it will be a total waste of money . Looks like theres a few hundred members upstairs but deadset Bedourie , Tambo , Cloncurry , Winton and Dingo have a trillion times more action then Gloucester Park .

JayJay

Sadly, you could write the same descriptor for the last 10? years. I think I wrote 6 years ago that I had been to rowdier funerals and it wouldn't have had a cent spent on it since. 

From someone who almost grew up there, it is monumentally sad, heartbreaking in fact, horrible failed management of both the industry and the venue. However, in spite of all that, I think/hope the Cup race should be a decent contest.

bookielover

Great to see that you arrived safely BB. 

Steve Mulhall the bookie is a nice bloke and his missus is a lovely lady. If the club have put him where I think they have, he's on the side of the main tote, propping up a wall. Hopefully I'm wrong and he's in a more prominent position tonight, not that it will make much difference. He'll be at Ascot tomorrow, where the difference in atmosphere in the betting ring will be like chalk and cheese. 

Having said that, the joint is stuffed. I used to go with the missus when in perth for something to do on a Friday night. Haven't been on our last two trips, one just before covid and one in 2023. Like you said, best viewing track in Oz but no atmosphere.

I complained on this forum last time we were there about 8 years ago now, when they would get a reasonable crowd , that they didn't care about the punter. They were showing the night races from the valley and Canterbury, on which I  was punting, but there was no sound. They were showing a One day game at the cricket with sound, and they had a singer on course blasting our ear drums between races. Last time I looked, no one was having a bet on the singer, or the cricket. 

They are an absolute joke. It has to be an old boys club there and serious questions need to be asked as to how the powers that be who run the joint, are being allowed to get away with a level of incompetence that defies description. 

They make Abuja Wells look like a pristine saint.

bookielover

That should have read, Anika Wells. Best torts in Australia being a politician, and they all do it. 

JayJay

Best not look at Senator Bumfluff or Bob Katters rap sheet, Anika 68th on the list. Keep you partisan crap to a political forum. 

Bushbookie

God the WACA next door had a rep when I was a 9 year old cricket mad kid in 1971 . Still remember one saturday afternoon listening to the radio when Dennis Lillee took 8 - 29 against a super strong world 11 . It was the FASTEST WICKET in the whole Cricket World . Then Roy Fredricks destoying Lillee and Thommo and Andy Roberts blitzing the Aussies . Every Mount Isa kid loved watching the WACA tests with Marshy 35 metres back to Lillee . That last Test at your new stadium was pissweak crap for a test . Teams full of dingers with No Lawrys , Reparths , Boycotts , Edrichs and Illingsworths batting to at least tire out a side and take some time out of a test .Bring back the WACA .

Bushbookie

Jay whos Bumfuff - Penny Hamas Wong .

JayJay

James Paterson...but that is not the point. This is a racing forum, it is not a politics forum. If people want to espouse the views.....and I can be as partisan as the next person...head on over to Twitter or The Conversation or Sky News or wherever you like...but not here. It invariably end in arguments with abuse and denigration. God knows, we can disagree enough about the way racing and harness are managed/mismanaged as the case may be without buggering things up with cheap potshots at whoever we don't vote for.

JayJay

I know there are 300,000 people who have said "I was there" the day the tyro Lillee took 8 for 29 and announced his arrival.......But I was there. It was an unreal day, it was terrifyingly quick.

When Gary Sobers came out to bat, he saw Rodney Marsh standing about 30 yards back. He said what are you doing back there, and Marsh said "You will find out".

Gavaskar, Lloyd, Tony Greig, he destroyed them.

Chopchop43

Was lucky enough as a high school kid on a school excursion to be out in the middle as they were doing the pitch report and coin toss Aus vs Pak with a prime Shoab Aktar, a few lads i knew from Rocky-Mandurah district cricket club were stirring Shoab up pre game as he was marking he's run up out, Shoab approached them and in no uncertain terms gave them a gobful in he's native tounge. Pakistan bowled first and 4th ball in Aktar had Hayden plumb infront, ive seen some really quick bowling in my time, but Aktars first spell at the Waca is the stuff of batsman's nightmares. As good as optus is l, the uniqueness of that waca deck will be sorely missed from an international point of view

VillageKid

Guys I am a self confessed cricket tragic.

I have been to at least 1 day of every Test played in Perth since the 1980s.

The reality is the WACA pitch of now is nowhere near the one with the pace and bounce from the 1970s & early 80s.

The complete overhaul of the ground circa 1986 to complement the return of football to the ground replaced almost all of the former Harvey River soil that made it unique.

Perth Stadium with its drop in pitches has at least returned that pace and bounce we were renowned for pre 86.

The WACA sadly is a relic of the past (much like its Northern neighbour across Nelson Crescent) eg no shade, no modern amenities, and if we continued at that ground Perth would be vying with Bellerive & Manuka for the rare 5th or 6th Test of a Summer against the likes of Sri Lanka, Afghanistan etc as Cricket Australia made that clear!

bookielover

JayJay said:

Best not look at Senator Bumfluff or Bob Katters rap sheet, Anika 68th on the list. Keep you partisan crap to a political forum. 

JayJay said:

Lighten up son. 

JayJay said:

First off, Anika happens to be the one in the news at the moment. Had it been a Liberal politician who was cuin the news doing what she's done, I would have used them as my reference. 

JayJay said:

Secondly, I wasn't making a political comment, in fact politics never entered my thoughts when posting . I was just using her as an analogy to describe an alleged misuse of public money.

JayJay said:

And thirdly, I  said " and they all do it". So I was being non political. 

JayJay said:

JayJay said:

bookielover

I don't know why this happens when posting. I think it happened to stg as well. I'm posting using a mobile phone. 

Perhaps Chris you can check why it occurs.

JayJay

Regardless of your disingenuous denials, it was a political post and I believe they have no place on a racing forum......just my view, I've expressed it before and will express it again if anyone posts partisan pie chucking.

bookielover

That's not very nice Jay Jay. You are effectively calling me a liar. I thought you were better than that. 

While I'll agree that we shouldn't talk politics here,  in response to an earlier post here of yours, my last political word will be this.

Yes Anika is 68th on the list of Rorters. 

But, she's only been in Canberra for 3 years. 

James Patterson has been in for 9 years. Heaven only knows what Anika would have ripped us off for if she hadn't been picked up on her excesses for another 6 years.

And I can't imagine how many millions she would have spent if like Bob Katter she had been in Parliament for 40 plus years.

As I said they all do it, and based on what Albo said at a press conference on Thursday, he has no intention of changing the rules, and neither would the Coalition in the unlikely event they were to win another election. 

JayJay

Think whatever you like, it's there for all to see, including your latest misinformation."While I agree we shouldn't talk politics here".......and off you go again.

Rorting is when you operate outside the rules. There is zero (none) evidence presented which suggest that Wells or Katter or anyone else has operated outside the rules ...except those who have been caught, been booted from Cabinet and been forced to pay back false claims, none of which has occurred during either this or the previous parliament. Fact.

Anika Wells was elected in 2019, 7 years ago. Fact.

The Prime Minister or the Coalition doesn't have the power to change the rules. That is controlled by IPEA, the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority. Fact.

They can ask for the rules to be reviewed which is precisely what the Prime Minister has done. And Sussan Ley has supported such a move. Fact.

savethegame

John Turner shovelled a ton of blue in 1min 17.5 Australian Record 1962 does anyone know has that record been broken.
V.K.friend helped put new wickets at Lilac Hill approx 45 years, ago (Harvey )the composition would allow fast bowlers to rip & day 4--5 cracks would appear for spinners.
Trotting track Kalgoorlie had the best wickets, which were from Harvey as well.
Mate happened to be at M.G . When Barry Richards was there, he told me Richards rated Stan Steamer Wilson one of best fast bowlers he faced.

savethegame

savethegame said:

John Turner shovelled a ton of blue metal in 1min 17.5 Australian Record 1962 does anyone know has that record been broken.
V.K.friend helped put new wickets at Lilac Hill approx 45 years, ago (Harvey )the composition would allow fast bowlers to rip & day 4--5 cracks would appear for spinners.
Trotting track Kalgoorlie had the best wickets, which were from Harvey as well.
Mate happened to be at M.G . When Barry Richards was there, he told me Richards rated Stan Steamer Wilson one of best fast bowlers he faced.

bookielover

Just for the record, while she was elected to the Federal  seat of Lilley in 2019, Anika Wells only became a Minister in 2022, and it is in that capacity that her spending is being investigated.

Ministers are far better placed to rort the system should they wish to, than backbenchers.

At a press conference on Thursday, which I watched live, even following constant questioning, the PM said nothing about referring anything to the IPEA. 

I had a busy day and didn't catch up with the news yesterday, but have now read on the ABC website, that yesterday, FRIDAY, Albanese asked the IPEA for advice on whether the rules need to change. 

Susan Ley agrees with the PM's position that the rules need to change.

To that end Ley wrote to the PM requesting a meeting with him in order to develop a bipartisan position on the issue. FACT. 

Today, Saturday, it was reported on Sky News, that the PM has refused to meet with Susan Ley. FACT. 

So much for a bipartisan approach to this issue. 

I hope that something is done about this. There can be no justification for what Wells did, and what the rest of them do, and have done, with our hard earned taxpayer dollars. Just because something happens to be legal, doesn't mean that it is morally or ethically acceptable. 

That it's on this subject from me. 

JayJay

Sky News....pffft...where the truth goes to die.

bookielover

The West Australian reported on it as well. I suppose news goes to die there too. 

It's unfortunate that you don't watch Sky news between 6.00AM and 4.00PM. You would love it. It is virtually all left wing biased reporting, which is right up your alley.

Between 4.00PM and 5.00 PM you have their chief political reporter Andrew Clennel presenting a fairly even handed half hour, he attacks them all, and at 4.30 till 5.00 PM you have Ross Greenwood presenting the business report, how the stock market finished etc. that business half hour is totally non political . 

Then from 5.00PM until midnight, it's all right wing presenters. So you could turn that off. 

I'm home and retired and watch a lot of Sky News throughout the day and into the night. At least I get to hear more than one lopsided opinion which is obviously your preference. I've always lived by the principle that if a policy is good for the country, I don't care which politician introduces it or from which party they come. 

That's the difference between you and me. While I lean to the right of the political spectrum, unlike you, I'm not blinkered biased. As far as I'm concerned the current Liberal party are a rabble and don't deserve, nor would they get my vote. You would never say that about the Labour Party if your life depended on it. You will obviously think that I'm lying about that. That's because it's probably inconceivable for you not to vote for the party you support irrespective of how bad they may be. 

By the way,  the West Australian reported what Sky News did about Albo refusing to meet with Ley, as well, but I suppose news goes to die there too.

 

By way of an update, more  has come out which shows that the PM, as his form suggests, lied this week  when he said that he can't change the expense rules only the independent authority can. He changed them in February 2025 just before the last election and got his special minister of state Don Farrel to do it. 

This issue isn't going away. I hope, as most people should, that a stop can be put on this excessive spending by those individuals. Pensioners are deciding if they can afford a meal, and politicians are gallivanting around the country with their spouses and kids going to pop concerts and grand finals. 

Fk them all. 

JayJay

Holier than though slop. Well done on completing hijacking a Racing forum with your sanitised nonsense.

savethegame

Vic Patrick score card equal after six.both boys couple low ones should be good contest if they cocentate on laying leather

Chopchop43

savethegame said:

John Turner shovelled a ton of blue in 1min 17.5 Australian Record 1962 does anyone know has that record been broken.
V.K.friend helped put new wickets at Lilac Hill approx 45 years, ago (Harvey )the composition would allow fast bowlers to rip & day 4--5 cracks would appear for spinners.
Trotting track Kalgoorlie had the best wickets, which were from Harvey as well.
Mate happened to be at M.G . When Barry Richards was there, he told me Richards rated Stan Steamer Wilson one of best fast bowlers he faced.

used to enjoy playing at Lilac Hill , funny enough used to always rate the deck behind the clubrooms higher than the festival match deck , offered a little bit to the seamers early , but once you got in great to bat on. The festival deck was a bit too much up and down for my liking

VillageKid

I agree Chopchop having played on both decks.

The recent England vs England Lions practice game before the 1st Test was actually played on that deck too.

VillageKid

savethegame said:

John Turner shovelled a ton of blue in 1min 17.5 Australian Record 1962 does anyone know has that record been broken.
V.K.friend helped put new wickets at Lilac Hill approx 45 years, ago (Harvey )the composition would allow fast bowlers to rip & day 4--5 cracks would appear for spinners.
Trotting track Kalgoorlie had the best wickets, which were from Harvey as well.
Mate happened to be at M.G . When Barry Richards was there, he told me Richards rated Stan Steamer Wilson one of best fast bowlers he faced.

Steamer Wilson passed away fairly recently STG.

carey

JayJay said:

Best not look at Senator Bumfluff or Bob Katters rap sheet, Anika 68th on the list. Keep you partisan crap to a political forum. 

It's the number one reason why I rarely post anything here.

Vincent_vega

JayJay said:

Holier than though slop. Well done on completing hijacking a Racing forum with your sanitised nonsense.

Pot calling the kettle black mate, you are giving as good as you are getting

JayJay

It wasn't me that introduced the politics onto a thread entitled "Gloucester Park Oncourse.....and yes, when nonsense is posted, I will not sit back and ignore. 

Chopchop43

VillageKid said:

I agree Chopchop having played on both decks.

The recent England vs England Lions practice game before the 1st Test was actually played on that deck too.

always a good day at lilac tho, would be in the top 5 best district cricket decks in the comp, after yesterday's weather toiling away at stan twight with no inkling of a seabreeze, the nostalgia of playing at both Melvilles home ground (name of the oval alludes me) and freos deck at stevens reserves made me appreciate the beautiful seabreeze you'd get at both venues , even with all the keeping gear on conditions were always comfortable and both ovals decks were a dream to bat on , I remember a 15 year old Mitch Marsh sending a couple over the edge of Stevens into the substation below in a colts game against us, we all knew the hype around him but to watch it in the flesh was amazing and what was even more disheartening was he could then come in and bowl at a decent clip too

JayJay

Tompkins Park on the river. Beautiful...played Country Week there in the middle of January, "River" breeze, bowling green oval in comparison to Jubillee Oval in Northam.

VK, do you remember Graham Taylor? Had a horse called Midland Guildford, maybe a similar time to Fox Oshaugnassy.....the cricket club was close to the hearts of its players. Steamer Stan was electric fast.