Chris Waller gives hobby trainer Craig Cousins reason to believe he can complete Stradbroke Handicap fairytale
It will be a David versus Goliath battle in the Stradbroke as 60-year-old Cousins, who only has three horses in work, takes on some of racing's biggest names.
Cousins knows he has a good horse and a good Stradbroke chance with home-bred hero The Inflictor, who is a $15 chance in Queensland's most prestigious race on Saturday week.
The Inflictor qualified for the Stradbroke by scoring a golden ticket when winning The Gateway at Eagle Farm and he rubber-stamped his claims by scoring at Doomben last month with Nash Rawiller in the saddle.
Enter Waller, who has infused Cousins with extra confidence and belief heading into the $3m Stradbroke.
'I had never met Chris Waller before, I had just seen him from a distance and that was about it,' Cousins said.
'He's obviously a master at what he does.
'I was walking around after the race the other day and I heard someone yelling, 'Craig, Craig'.
'I recognised the voice and it was Chris Waller.
'He shook my hand and congratulated me.
'Chris said, 'this is what racing is about, this is a great story'.
'He said he wished me all the best for the Stradbroke.
'I told Chris he would probably have a good Stradbroke horse himself.
'He said, 'don't worry about mine Craig, yours is a genuine chance'.'
The Inflictor dominates Race 2 at Doomben! ðŸ'° @nashhot pic.twitter.com/VDvywPyYXw
— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) May 24, 2025
Four-year-old The Inflictor has won $499,000 in prizemoney and will add another $1.8m to that haul if he scores the Group 1 Stradbroke at Eagle Farm.
It would be one of the greatest stories in Stradbroke history.
Cousins juggles his day job as a truck driver with his work training horses but will put the handbrakes on the truck driving job next week so he can enjoy Stradbroke week.
He has even bought himself a new suit for Stradbroke week and several new ties.
He plans to lap up the week and go to Breakfast With The Stars at Eagle Farm on Tuesday as well as the barrier draw function at The Star on Tuesday night.
'Life wouldn't change too much if I won the Stradbroke, but it would be a bloody good feeling,' Cousins said.
'My horse's win the other day was really impressive, I didn't realise how impressive it was until I watched a replay later.
'I can only have three horses at the one time, if I have any more it's too hard doing it one-out.
'I do get an occasional hand off different friends, but most of the time it's just me.
'This horse will have a red-hot go in the Stradbroke.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Courier-Mail
24 minutes ago
- Courier-Mail
West Indies v Australia, second Test day two live: Scoreboard, latest news from Grenada
Don't miss out on the headlines from Cricket. Followed categories will be added to My News. Australia is hoping to cash in on variable bounce in the Grenada pitch which reared its head on day one of the second Test against the West Indies. Pat Cummins has dismissed by a delivery which kept low, the most significant sign of demons in the pitch on the opening day of play. FOLLOW THE KEY MOMENTS FROM DAY TWO WITH DANIEL CHERNY BELOW 'I think there was probably opportunity there for a few more runs. But we're in the game with 280-plus. I think there was enough variable (bounce) there on day one,' Aussie keeper Alex Carey told SEN. 'Potentially that will come into play tomorrow, three and four. I guess prefer to have 280 than anything less and we're in the game.' On Pat Cummins' dismissal — when the ball kept alarmingly low — Carey said: 'We saw Pat Cummins' dismissal today. That's 50 overs in and it stays low. There was enough movement there early for sure.' Carey said Australia's top-three played encouragingly to help set up a total of 286 which was spearheaded by the gloveman and Beau Webster. 'I thought the openers started really well today … I thought Usman and especially Sam Konstas, his intent was fantastic. I thought he really looked the part out there today. Then Cam Green came in and did the same thing. Had great intent. Played good shots. He looked really solid. They are promising signs,' he said. X SUBSCRIBER ONLY Originally published as West Indies v Australia, second Test day two live: Scoreboard, latest news from Grenada
SBS Australia
37 minutes ago
- SBS Australia
PM maintains commitment to clean energy, but wants green hydrogen as centrepiece of energy future
Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox. Your email address * Morning (Mon–Fri) Afternoon (Mon–Fri) Weekend Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to SBS's terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.
Daily Telegraph
an hour ago
- Daily Telegraph
Rosehill Turf Talk: Best bet gets key gear change, plus a $71 tip
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Form experts Mitch Cohen and Shayne O'Cass debate all the key chances at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday, including a recently-gelded Godolphin sprinter and a Kris Lees runner that will go around at a massive price. • PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW! ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ Shayno: Hello Mitchy. I can't help myself; can never walk past an honour roll. Past Winter Stakes winners that stood out – San Domenico, Nebo Road, All Our Mob. You can go first Mitchy, who will join that list after Saturday? Mitch: Word is you're on the honour roll at a certain Thai restaurant in Haymarket, Shayno. As for the Winter Stakes, tipping it will be Welwal. He went enormous in that Civic Stakes behind Headley Grange and can go one better here. Wet track has to be a huge plus! • Darby tons up as the winners keep rolling Shayno: I am pretty keen on Ruby Flyer. In fact I made him my best bet. I hope it stays nice and wet, heavy would do more without being a bog. He got some very good form at a mile, so 1400m fresh is right up the alley. Mitch: Good to see a two-year-old race back on the program after a couple of weeks without, albeit there nearly all three now Shayno. I reckon we are going to see a very serious horse step out again – that's Raging Force. Tipping he makes a statement and we see him making his presence felt in races like the Rosebud soon. Shayno: This is a 'before scratchings' statement; but wow, what a line-up. I should have learned by now that race experience is gold in two-year-old racing, more so on a heavy track but I fancy one of Waller's bluebloods to run well here, namely the Gerry Harvey-bred Portofino. Mitch: Could we see a Kerry Parker quinella in the Midway? Close Encounter and Equilibrist look to be great chances and they're both double figure odds. • Pride has eyes on weather for Winter Stakes top seed Shayno: I feel like you should be writing this one Mitchy. but I have a Kembla quinella for this Midway too. Kerry Parker's Equilibrist is so close to a win and so far as I see it, Noble Soldier's 'best' beats them all. Mitch: All Kembla content welcome here mate. If we are looking elsewhere, I am really keen on Tarpaulin first run back a gelding. This is a horse that finished a length off the winner in Group 2 company last prep and finds himself in a Benchmark 78 here. The wet track should be no worries for him. • Sistina's a special but still plenty of intrigue for horse of the year gongs Shayno: Whatever happens I hope it is no better than a Soft 7 by the last so my longshot of the day, Valimi, wins. Mitch: As soon as I saw that name in the form guide, I knew you'd be finding it. $71 for the punters. The value for me is Cormac T, race 7. Reckon he bounces back in a big way. Originally published as Rosehill Turf Talk: Key gear change for Mitch Cohen's best bet on Saturday as Shayne O'Cass takes swing at $71 pop
