English Premier League stars eye Golden Eagle bid
Seagulls Eleven could be set to follow in the footsteps of 2024 Golden Eagle winner Lake Forest and head 'down under' in pursuit of the world's richest race for four-year-olds.
The horse's name is a nod to Brighton Hove Albion, which are nicknamed The Seagulls and finished eighth in last year's Premier League.
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!
A host of Brighton players both past and present are involved in the horse, including English internationals James Milner, Danny Welbeck and Adam Lallana.
Former Liverpool and England striker Michael Owen is also involved and is no stranger to bringing horses to Australia as an owner of ex-Melbourne Cup contender Brown Panther, which finished eighth in the famous two-mile race in 2013.
READ: Forged friendship has Hadouken on course for Darwin Cup defence
Seagulls Eleven, wearing the blue and white colours of Brighton, is trained by English-based horseman Hugo Palmer and put a trip to Australia on the agenda with victory in the Group 3 Thoroughbred Stakes (1609m) at the Glorious Goodwood carnival on Friday.
'He's taken us all around the world and I don't think we're done yet,' Palmer told the Racing Post.
'The Golden Eagle in Sydney has already been mentioned and why not? It's a $10 million race. Where can you say that in England?'
Seagulls Eleven could have one more start in England in the City Of York Stakes before he would need to enter quarantine to head to Australia for the Golden Eagle on November 1 at Rosehill Gardens.
Australian Turf Club Head of Racing and Wagering Nevesh Ramdhani was in the UK for the Glorious Goodwood and spoke to multiple stables about the prospect of heading to Sydney for the spring carnival.
READ: 'She is so humble': Proud Mum revels in daughter's premiership feat
'There has certainly been a lot of interest in Australian racing with horses from multiple yards interested in coming down,' Ramdhani said.
'Seagulls Eleven is one, Charlie Fellowes has a horse called Luther that ran at Saratoga on Friday and he's interested and of course William Haggas has a few potential horses.'
Ramdhani will also spend time talking to stables in Japan on his way back to Australia.
TAB have installed Seagulls Eleven as a $26 elect for the Golden Eagle with Chris Waller's star mares Autumn Glow ($3.50) and Lady Shenandoah ($4.50) heading betting for Sydney's second richest race.
Haggas also has his sights set on the $500,000 Group 3 St Leger (2600m) on The Everest Day for staying talent Sam Hawkens.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
16 minutes ago
- News.com.au
2025 Langer Trophy live stream: Palm Beach Currumbin SHS v Keebra Park SHS, Round 7
The annual Gold Coast derby takes on a whole new meaning as the wildest week in Langer Trophy history kicks off. Any of four schools finish second on the ladder, with a guaranteed finals bye week, or miss out on the finals entirely. It sounds absurd but a season of twists and turns has forged an almighty ladder logjam where only minor premier Keebra Park is safe from being bundled out of the finals the week before they begin. That is why Palm Beach Currumbin coach Tim Maccan has hailed the Langer Trophy as Australia's greatest school footy competition, and why his school will fight to break arch rival Keebra Park's unbeaten streak at Burleigh on Tuesday. The clash will be exclusively live streamed FREE on KommunityTV and A Reds win of any scale will lock in a finals bye or a semi-final against the Titans Cup winners, and Langer Trophy finals qualifiers, Marymount College, as reward for finishing second or third. A heavy loss could see Palm Beach tumble out of the tournament's top five and end its national championship defence by Wednesday. 'It's always a special occasion playing Keebra Park … but it does have a bit of extra special meaning this week,' Maccan said on the eve of the Gold Coast's biggest school sporting rivalry. 'It will be the biggest games of some of these kids' lives playing for the school, 100 per cent. 'This potentially could be their last game of senior footy for their school so it's definitely going to have some meaning, that's for sure. 'It's basically a grand final because if we don't play well and put ourselves in a position to win the game, we will fall down the ladder or possibly even out of the finals altogether. 'The boys are aware of that and know they have to play well.' Defeat would give the school a best-case scenario finish of fourth but the possibility exists (if PBC lose, Marsden beat Mabel Park, Ipswich beat Stretton and Wavell tie Redcliffe) that the national champions could be eliminated on points differential. Maccan is keeping it simple for his students: take the fight to Keebra in the biggest game the school has played since last year's national decider and the equation will take care of itself. 'It's really encouraging that the competition is so tight,' the coach said. 'It just goes to show the southeast Queensland competition is probably the best in Queensland and possibly in Australia. The quality of teams and the tightness of the competition, the evidence is there for the latter. 'It's definitely a game on the calendar the boys look forward to, and it does draw a big crowd from both schools, but with where we're sitting in third spot we need to put in a good performance to make sure we cement a position in the finals. 'It would be good to finish second (on the Langer ladder) but more importantly we just want to finish on a high note.' Titans-contracted backrower Kobe Hauraki will undergo a fitness test to make his Langer Trophy debut for the school against Keebra. Originally published as
The Australian
24 minutes ago
- The Australian
Best bets and expert tips for Wodonga races Tuesday
News Corp form analyst Brad Waters looks at Tuesday's meeting at Wodonga. • 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! BEST BET ABOVE ME (Race 1 No.10): The mare pushed forward and tried hard on debut. She'll be much better for that outing and should be harder to hold out this time. NEXT BEST HOT CHIPS (Race 9 No.6 - $3.20): Hot Chips is racing in great heart and only went down narrowly in a similar race at Bairnsdale. She'll go close again at Wodonga. RUPERTS RED ROCKET (Race 10 No.1): Ruperts Red Rocket is hard-fit and didn't have much luck at BM64 level at Bendigo. He drops to BM58 grade at Wodonga and has a top chance to break through. VALUE BET WOLLEMIA ANGEL (Race 6 No.14 - $10) The Danny O'Brien-trained four-year-old narrowly broke her maiden at Bairnsdale last time. She's up in class but could measure up. LAY OF THE DAY ROYAL TURF (Race 10 No.6) Royal Turf pushed forward and got home on debut at Wangaratta last month but this will be a tougher assignment with a couple of runners ahead of him. THE JOCKEY CELINE GAUDRAY Jockey Celine Gaudray heads to Wodonga for six rides on Tuesday. WITH STRENGTH (Race 1 No.7 - $5.50), COUNTRY BLUES (Race 2 No.15 - $14), WALLENBERG (Race 4 No.7 - $2.40), INSPIRED CHOICE (Race 6 No.15 - $3.80), STAHNADO (Race 8 No.10 - $9), ROYAL TURF (Race 10 No.6 - $2.30). Read related topics: News Corporation Horse Racing Private Harry has strengthened significantly for his spring carnival assault on The Everest where the unbeaten sprinter will wear a specially designed set of silks. Horse Racing Two-time Caulfield Cup winner Chris Waller will have an incredible number of entries, including several untested imports, for the $5m race but has a warning on the favourite.
The Australian
24 minutes ago
- The Australian
Chris Waller set to have at least 28 entries in quest for third Caulfield Cup
Champion Sydney trainer Chris Waller will have at least 28 chances for a third Caulfield Cup when nominations for the Melbourne Racing Club's showpiece close on Tuesday. Waller won the Caulfield Cup with Verry Elleegant and Durston in 2020 and 2022 respectively and prepares Aeliana, the $8 favourite in early betting on the 2025 edition of the $5m handicap. • 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! Aeliana easily won the Australian Derby at Randwick in the autumn and was narrowly beaten in the Group 1 Thousand Guineas last spring at her last Caulfield appearance. However, Waller has warned punters Aeliana was unlikely to tackled the Caulfield Cup as a four-year-old. Waller's Caulfield Cup team includes last year's runner-up Buckaroo as well as a host of stable recruits, including the South Australian Derby winner Femminile. • Mr Brightside 'felt great' in Flemington trial Phillip Stokes trained Femminile to her South Australian Derby success in May but new owners Yulong Investments transferred the four-year-old to Waller's after her unplaced run in the Queensland Derby. While Stokes lost Femminile, he has entered the exciting stayer Deakin for the Caulfield Cup. Deakin has a ballot exemption for the Melbourne Cup after winning the Roy Higgins at Flemington in March. Waller's team includes several imports that have not yet raced for his stable, including Go Daddy, a multiple stakes placegetter in Europe last year, and Mr Monaco, a lightly-raced son of Territories. • Brad Waters' horses to follow from Flemington on Saturday Last year's Caulfield Cup-winning trainer Ciaron Maher will have at least nine entries in this year's race. The 2024 Caulfield Cup winner Duke De Sessa is among the entries along with recent stable acquisition Zardozi. Zardozi joined Maher's stable after Godolphin dispersed their massive team among several stables following the departure of private trainer James Cummings to take up a contract in Hong Kong. Zardozi won the Group 1 VRC Oaks as a three-year-old and finished fourth in both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups last year. Caulfield Cup nominations close at noon on Tuesday.
