Wondai trainer daring to dream of Battle of the Bush crown

By Andrew Smith

Kym Afford admits he feels more at home racing on the sand at a Bundaberg race meeting than in front of a big crowd on the turf of Eagle Farm.

But the trainer will have no hesitation in heading to the city this weekend for the chance to score the biggest prize of his career with a Battle of the Bush crown.

Seven-year-old Holiday Dreams will line up for the Wondai-based conditioner in the $200,000 Final at Tattersall’s Tiara Raceday at Eagle Farm on Saturday.

The gelding qualified for the big dance after a tight win in the Gladstone qualifier at the end of last month.

Afford had previously come close to qualifying for the $116,000-to-the-winner event with Love Ya Blue a couple of years ago.

But prior to May’s qualifier in Gladstone, a spot in this year’s Final had not even been on the radar for Holiday Dreams.

“We had one close to a qualifier at Burrandowan a couple of years ago, and it got washed out so we never got the start and then we’ve never had a horse really since him to even consider looking at it,” Afford said.

“We started Holiday Dreams at (BOTB qualifier) Jandowae, mainly because it was a Benchmark 70 and there weren’t many runs around open.

“So we started him there with extra prize money, and the Battle of the Bush was just a sideline for us, and he sort of got knocked down a bit but I was happy with his run.

“And then, when Gladstone came up it was just another race and lo and behold it was the Battle of the Bush qualifier and he won it.”

Originally from South Australia, Afford was managing a vineyard and working on an agistment property owned by the legendary Hayes family when he decided to move to Queensland in 2014.

The 61-year-old kicked off his training career in the 2017/18 season on the Queensland country circuit.

Starting with just a few runners, the stable grew quickly after Afford met larrikin Chinchilla-based owner and trainer Rodney Hay.

Afford now has 14 in work at his base at the Wondai Showgrounds.

He jokes that he would probably have been retired by now had Hay not kept sending him horses.

“I talk to everyone and Rodney talks to everyone, and out of the blue, we were at Burrandowan  one year, and he was talking about his horses,” Afford said.

“I said to him, ‘well if you’ve got a few send them my way’, and Rodney is a man of his word.

“We got some pretty handy ones, and we've got Rodney’s support - I’ve got about seven or eight of mine that I own and six of Rodney’s that he owns.

“We're wrapped with that, and that just suits us down to the ground.

“We've been battling away and Rodney threw us a silver spoon, and we bounced on our feet and we couldn’t be happier.”

The small town of Wondai is quite the distance from Moonee Valley where Holiday Dreams kicked off his career in November 2019 under the eye of the Michael, John & Wayne Hawkes stable.

The gelding also raced under Matt Laurie before heading north to the Robert Heathcote stable in Brisbane in late 2021.

His biggest win was a Class 2 Plate event at Doomben in February 2022 before he was transferred to Hay’s stable in June 2023.

With Holiday Dreams placing consistently on the country circuit, Hay believed Afford was better placed to take on the galloper earlier this year.

“In his first start in Gympie he won, and then he ran a few placings, and Rodney reckons he was a bit of a sand goanna,” Afford said.

“Because we race a fair bit on the dirt, he said ‘do you want to have a go at him?’

“He hasn't looked back. He just loves it. He's a good old horse.

“I know he can run on the grass, but he seems to grow five lengths on the sand.”

Young apprentice jockey Shakira Bailey has piloted Holiday Dreams in his last five runs, including wins in Gympie and the BOTB qualifier in Gladstone.

But it will be Group 1 winner Jake Bayliss who will take the ride in Saturday’s 1200m final.

Afford said he was ecstatic to have the champion hoop on board his big hope, an assignment that came about somewhat fortuitously earlier this week.

“Originally, Georgina Cartwright was riding, and then she decided to go to Gatton,” Afford said.

“And then Kyle Wilson-Taylor was going to ride him, and then Kyle got suspended on Sunday at the Sunshine Coast.

“Monday morning, my phone was going berserk, and it was Jake Bayliss - so we're stoked and couldn’t be happier.

“Jake is just a bloke that has a go…and he's from Ipswich, he loves his cattle and he’s a bit of a knockabout bloke, so I think we should get on.”

Holiday Dreams will jump from barrier five for Saturday’s race, and was rated a $51 chance as of Friday morning.

The Mark Cochrane-trained Real Key and Pat Webster’s Invahir sit atop the market.

Afford will make his first trip to Eagle Farm with wife Sonia, with the couple tackling the three-hour journey from the South Burnett on Saturday morning.

The trainer said it was business as usual this week despite heading to the city for the biggest race of his time in the caper.

“Yeah it’s a big thrill…that's what it's all about, that's what we do it for,” Afford said.

“We haven't changed a thing. He ran a fortnight ago at Gympie for his last hit out, where he ran second.

“He has just shone since, his work has just improved and we’ve only got to look at his eyes, he's pretty happy and he's ready to go.

“He didn't just win it by fluke and he hasn't beaten rubbish - he's beaten some good horses, so we're going in pretty confident with him.”

The Battle of the Bush Series comprised of 16 qualifiers which commenced on April 5.

Last year’s Final was taken out by the John Manzelmann-trained Tiger Legend.