On Wednesday March 4th we appeared before the NSW Racing Appeal Panel in relation to our appeal against severity of penalty imposed on us by a Stewards Inquiry on January 20th.

We had our period of suspension reduced from four months to three. We can now resume training on April19th.

During the Appeal and the Inquiry it was never alleged that we administered the substance to the horses, in fact it was proven that we didn't. Evidence that we presented, and backed up by the Racing NSW Chemist, clearly showed that we could not have administered the substance. We feel vindicated that our assertions that we didn't knowingly administer any prohibited substance to our horses was proven and accepted by the Panel.

Our appeal was against severity of penalty only. We were not in a position to appeal against conviction as we had previously pleaded guilty to a charge under AR178 being that we presented  horses to race with a prohibited substance detected in them. This rule is biased against the trainers of any racehorse as it places the onus on the trainer to present the horse without a prohibited substance in it. It was explained to us that even if we could prove that we hadn't administered the substance to the horse we would still be guilty under AR 178, because it is our responsibility to ensure that the horse hasn't accidently ingested the substance or been 'got at'.

Our concern is that this type of incident doesn't happen again. We have made improvements to our stable procedures and we are confident that it will not.

Thanks to our owners, family, friends and racing people in general, your support and understanding has been overwhelming. We look forward to catching up with you all soon.

Regards

Mick & Donna.