An emotional Wave takes the Nullarbor

20 April 2024 | Adam Hamilton
Logo
Catch A Wave's Nullarbor Win

Catch A Wave's Nullarbor Win Photo by Pacepix

BRILLIANT Victorian raider Catch A Wave gave superstar driver Kate Gath the most satisfying win of her stellar career in last night's $1.25mil Group 1 Nullarbor at Gloucester Park.

And the five-year-old gelding, who had already won a Miracle Mile, smashed through the $2 million prize money barrier in the process.

"That's right up there," Gath said. 

"In fact, for sheer satisfaction, it's as good as it gets."

"I felt driving in this race, around this track, was the biggest challenge of my career. I was nervous, and I don't usually get nervous. It's a really special win."

"This horse has been so great to us, and to have him call all the way here, after having his ups and downs over the past 12 months, and to win is just fantastic."

Adding hugely to the moment was the presence of owner Pauline Matthews, wife of the owner Richard Matthews, at Gloucester Park.

"I never go to the races, but something just made me want to be in Perth for this one," said Matthews, who lives near Port Fairy in Victoria.

"Richard loved this horse. He was the horse he'd been waiting to get his whole life. He'll be up there sharing the moment with us."

Richard Matthews passed away in September 2022 when Catch A Wave was just starting his rise to prominence.

"He's more than a horse to us. He's not just the best horse we've had, but it's been such a special chapter of our lives to share with Richard and now Pauline and the family. It just makes wins like this mean so much more," trainer Andy Gath said."

Remarkably, the Nullarbor wasn't on the radar for Catch A Wave until a month before the race.

An aborted attempt at defending his Miracle Mile left Team Gath wondering what to do with their stable star.

"He had an injury scare, which turned out to only be a corn and an abscess, and he recovered quickly, but the Miracle Mile was gone," Andy Gath said.

"It was either put him out for a spell or look at one of the slot races. He recovered so quickly that we had to look at one of the slots. I'll be honest: Our preference was the NZ race (Race By Grins, run last Friday), but all the slots were gone."

"So, we thought about Perth and then got a call from Rob Tomlinson, who manages the Regency Foods slot. It didn't take long before we had a deal done."

"Kate and I did um and ah a bit about going to Perth, but everything has gone right since we came across and we really felt we had him as good as we ever have tonight."

Kate Gath did the rest, taking advantage of a blazing tempo set by the leaders as she sat back in the field and swooping late to beat a very gallant local Minstrel by three metres with a half-head away to outsider Swingband in third spot.

"There was a lot of talk about Spirit Of St Louis and Hot And Treacherous going at it up front, and I was thrilled when they did," Gath said.

"After a lap, I thought we're going to be right in this and then when I got a three-wide trail home I started to get really excited. When I said go, he just put them away."

Minstrel did a mighty job to run second after making a midrace move to sit outside the leader in slick times, while Swingband made plenty of late ground from behind Catch A Wave.

The win gave Andy Gath the "full set" with Group 1 victories in each Australian harness racing state.

"That's pretty satisfying, but the real story for Kate and I is sharing this win, this moment with Pauline (Matthews) and her family. It's why we're in the game," he said.

·Adam Hamilton is a paid contributor writing on harness racing for News Corp

 

Related News

4 April 2025
Club Menangle Set To Light Up In Pink Throughout May, thanks to Coutts Lawyers & Conveyancers
Club Menangle is turning pink throughout the month of May for Pacing For Pink in support of the McGrath Foundation. This will be the fourth successive year Club Menangle has participated in the national campaign, which aims to raise funds and awareness for the McGrath Cancer Care Nurses. In Australia,...
4 April 2025
Williams stable looking to end a run of minor placings
Bagdad-based trainer Paul Williams will take three runners to Hobart on Friday night, hoping his recent run of minor placings can be improved with a winner. Williams has prepared one winner this season, with nine minor placings from 32 starts. “The team is going well, so I can’t complain,”...
3 April 2025
Burning Questions: Luke debuts alongside Dunny, Daz and TOC
Caller Luke Humphreys, trainer-driver Aaron Dunn, and form analysts Darren Carroll and Tim O'Connor sat down to chat through key races at Mildura, Cambridge and Melton on this week's edition of Burning Questions.
3 April 2025
TOC'S TAKEAWAYS: 90-year-old Ted the hero of the week
Tim O'Connor picks his favourite bits from the harness racing week that was and the one ahead... CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL COLUMN AT THETROTS.COM.AU
3 April 2025
Its Confidential ready to rock in Nutrien Classic
Russell Jack is looking ahead to the Nutrien Equine Classic Race Series 4 following his bitter-sweet sojourn to last week’s Bathurst carnival.
Click for more