Rowe on Monday – The end of an era for Cornerstone, Diamond desire for a Kiwi filly and Burnet’s slice of history

Sam Pritchard-Gordon, one of the many good guys in the thoroughbred industry, doesn’t know what’s next.

As he has for as long as he can remember, Pritchard-Gordon is focused on doing his best for the horses.

Historic Cornerstone Stud in South Australia’s Barossa Valley will this week disperse its bloodstock via Inglis Digital with owner John Frankhuisen and Pritchard-Gordon agreeing to call time on their thoroughbred pursuits.

Frankhuisen, a successful South Australian businessman, owns the breeding business overseen by Pritchard-Gordon while the pair jointly own the Cornerstone Stud property.

The decision to disperse was neither an easy or quick decision but one that was made in good conscience, with the “writing on the wall for a while.”

“John Frankhuisen is a superb human. He saved Sam Hayes from financial ruin four years ago and took on the responsibility of Cornerstone and gave it a really good crack,” Pritchard-Gordon told The Straight on Monday. 

“It’s not easy in a contracting environment, and that’s not just South Australia, that is the breeding industry as a whole. Being on the periphery of that, and carrying a lot of hereditary debt made it a very difficult task.”

A year ago, Frankhuisen told Pritchard-Gordon he was free to canvass potential other investors about taking on the Cornerstone business.  

“John said, ‘Sam, I’m just nervous about putting more money into the business’ and this was 12 months ago,” Pritchard-Gordon said.

“He said if you could find someone who’d be willing to take on the responsibility and carry the farm through then you’d have my blessing. 

“So, I went down that route and just wasn’t able to get anything over the line and so we had a very frank chat three weeks ago and he said, ‘Sam, I’m sorry, I would love to be able to carry this on but I’m not enjoying it because of the financial stress and I can see the stress that you’re under and I think the best thing is to wind it all up’.”

Staff were informed of the decision and 34 horses have been placed in the online sale.

South Australia has effectively become an agistment state, with the commercial realities making it unviable to stand stallions.

That change in market dynamics hit Cornerstone Stud harder than most.

“It’s very difficult to really build a business around that and you, therefore, need to be selling horses particularly well and that part of the market is getting more and more difficult to land one into the bullseye,” he said.

So, what’s next for Pritchard-Gordon and his family and the Cornerstone Stud property?

“I don’t know the answer to that. That’s sort of something that will evolve over the course of the next few months. I don’t see it being a horse property per se,” he said.

“If I could find someone to buy John out, that could be a scenario that works. I think over the course of the next few months that will become clearer, but I’m not in the position to be able to buy John out, so it’s going to be an interesting one.”

A neighbouring property that was sold off by the Hayes family which became Goldin Farms – where Hong Kong Derby winner Akeed Mofeed first stood – was sold in 2022 after owner Pan Sutong struck financial trouble.

The property is now used to run cattle and not horses.

“The stud farm numbers are shrinking (in South Australia), sadly,” Pritchard-Gordon said.

“Mill Park, Kambula, Ralph (Satchell at Willow Grove) and Ross (Hatton at Rathmore Lodge) would be the only ones left.”

While the industry faces its own challenges, Pritchard-Gordon remains focused on the dispersal rather than himself.

“The modus operandi is to get this tied up as well as I can do and the nice thing is John’s going to honour all creditors,” he said. 

“It’s not like we’ve gone bankrupt. It’s an orderly wind up and we’re doing everything right by everyone that’s been good to us. 

“And there have been plenty that have been very good to us.”

Likewise, Sam. Go well.

Diamond aim for Dealer?

Whether Sydney’s $2 million Five Diamonds, whose Group 3 status was ratified by the Asian Pattern Committee last month, should exist is an argument for another day.

But the 1800m race, run at Rosehill on November 7, is garnering attention of owners and trainers across the country and across the Tasman.

Rich Hill Stud’s John Thompson, a proud Kiwi who awaits a busy breeding season with Proisir, Satono Aladdin, Ace High and Shocking on the New Zealand farm’s stallion roster, has circled the Five Diamonds for his Group 1-winning mare She’s A Dealer, a homebred daughter of Ace High.

Trained by Roger James and Robert Wellwood, She’s A Dealer has twice campaigned in Australia without much luck and it’s the $2 million race that could be on the agenda in the hope of a breakthrough.

“The 1800m should be right up her alley. I’m not saying we’re going to target that, but we were talking about that the other day (James and I),” Thompson said. 

“She’s a five-year-old, it’s probably a really good race to target. 

“With a horse like her, there’s a lot of options anyway, which is a good position to be in.”

She’s A Dealer could resume in the Group 1 Proisir Plate at Ellerslie on September 5 before making her way to Australia.

“She’s up to winning a Group race in Australia somewhere at some stage and she’s a relatively lightly raced five-year-old, so fingers crossed she’s still got a couple of good seasons ahead of her,” Thompson said.

“I’ve bred a lot of good horses, but I must admit the thrill of actually racing a Group 1 winner is pretty special.” 

Burnet’s own piece of history 

Young NSW trainer Darrell Burnet can lay claim to creating a little bit of history by educating the inaugural winner of Malaysia’s Community Horse Project race series.

The Selangor Turf Club embarked on an ambitious sale concept, selling more than 50 horses via the Inglis Digital platform to Malaysian owners and trainers earlier this year, with designated races to run each month solely for sale graduates.

The first of those was run on Sunday, with newly turned three-year-old Hanseatic colt Mega Velocity trouncing his rivals by more than five lengths.

He was one of six winners on the day for Brazilian jockey Bernardo Pinheiro, who is riding in Kuala Lumpur during the United Arab Emirates racing off-season.

Mega Velocity was sold by Burnet, a breaker, trainer and horse trader at last year’s Inglis Ready to Race Sale to the Selangor Turf Club for $24,000.

Sadly, the race was marred by a terrible fall involving jockey CK Khaw who is in hospital with severe injuries as a result of the incident.