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Grahame Begg has announced he will close his Randwick stables next month after 25 years in the training business.
The son of legendary Randwick trainer Neville, Begg took over the family stable as a 29-year-old and saddled up his first group 1 winner with Eye Of The Sky in the 1990 Doomben Cup.
"After 25 years I am closing my Randwick stables in December. Thank you to my family, clients & loyal staff," Begg tweeted.
He ended up training 14 group 1 winners from 10 individual horses, the last of which came via Secret Admirer in the 2011 Epsom Handicap.
Arguably his best horse was dual major winner All Silent, which won the 2008 Emirates Stakes before returning 12 months later to the Flemington carnival to win the Patinack Farm Classic down Flemington's straight six.
His small stable endured a frustrating run of near misses last season, placing 48 times to complement just the eight wins over the course of the 2013-14 racing year.
Meanwhile, it has been almost three years since Todd Howlett won a Saturday metropolitan race, but plucking Music Man out of the paddock may have been the best decision he made to end the drought.
Howlett, who has since shifted his team from Cessnock down the road to Newcastle, has designs on a Scone Guineas campaign with the grey after he tackles city company for the first time at Randwick on Saturday.
"He's not a very big horse which was probably a worry with him early ... he probably still hasn't grown that much," said Howlett, who bought the horse after it was passed in at the sales.
"We'll probably only just give him the one more run and then put him away for a little while. If he goes good [on Saturday] we had a plan to get him back in time for Scone and the three-year-old race [Scone Guineas]."
Music Man has chalked up back-to-back wins at Gosford and Newcastle, fuelling Howlett's desire to try his luck again in town for a first Saturday win since Star Of Octagonal was flying the stable flag.
In other news, Gosford Race Club chief executive James Heddo has been elected as the Provincial Racing Association's new chairman.
Heddo will take over from Illawarra Turf Club boss Peter De Vries, who finished his two-year term at the PRA's annual meeting.
Hawkesbury's Brian Fletcher was elevated to vice-chairman.
Heddo's appointment coincided with the release of Racing NSW's strategic plan, contingent on the state government granting tax parity for the state in line with other racing jurisdictions.
"The new strategic plan, although highlighting the need for taxation parity with other states, establishes goals that all sections of the industry should embrace and support," Heddo said.
The Provincial Racing Association is made up of NSW's five provincial clubs, which race at Newcastle, Gosford, Wyong, Hawkesbury and Kembla Grange.
