Schoolboy Ryan, 16, gets the reins behind Make Way at Menangle on Tuesday
When Make Way steps onto the Menangle track on the outskirts of Sydney tomorrow 16-year-old Ryan Sanderson will be in the sulky, thanks to getting the afternoon off school.
Sanderson is in his last year of school but already is a regular face at the stables of trainers Sonya Smith and Anthony Butt, helping out on weekends, during the holidays and even some weekday mornings when he has to leave by 8am to make class on time.
So the couple has a lot of confidence he can do the right job on the talented pacer, whom he has driven in plenty of work and when he trialled so well last week.
The son of local trainer Shane Sanderson, Ryan began race driving recently and scored his first win at Newcastle two weeks ago at his 13th attempt.
“He’s a great wee driver and a really nice well-mannered boy who’s good with the horses,” says Butt. “And he drove the horse perfectly at the trials, did exactly what we told him to.”
Smith and Butt are giving Sanderson his chance tomorrow on Make Way as being a concession junior driver it sees the horse start from a great inside draw rather than the seven or eight gate he would have been allocated.
And over a mile at Menangle that is a huge advantage, prompting Butt to declare Make Way is certainly a top three chance and will be very hard to beat if he leads or trails.
“There is a bit of speed outside us but he has good gate speed and I’d be happy to see him stay in front. But Ryan will sum it out and I’m sure he’ll be selective if he lets one go.
“He’ll be very hard to beat even first-up, the way he trialled, but there’s nothing like a hard race to bring their fitness on.
“And this is only a kick-off point. He has bigger fish to fry this season.”
Butt himself takes the drive on brother Tim’s runner Ideal Star, who draws the outside of the gate.
“He’s quite a nice horse, who has done a good job since he arrived from Dickies in New Zealand, but the draw will hurt him.
“He’ll settle back in the field and will have a bit of a task from there.”
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Mark Dux’s comments
Saturday night at Albion Park
Race 4: Argyle
10.09pm NZ time
“Hell go into the race as one of the favourites for sure and he’ll get a nice trip whether we lead or trail and he should finish top three again. We’ll come off the gate well and hopefully be good enough to hold Alta Magacian beside us. But even if he crosses us, that’s not a bad scenario, as he’s a decent horse who should get us to the corner.”