Melito Cleans Up Awards Night

GERALD Ryan's brilliant Melito has deservedly cleaned up at the NSW Racehorse Owners Association's Night of Champions awards.

Melito claimed the NSW Horse of the Year title and was also a clear cut winner of the three-year-old category.

The awards night also turned into a celebration for champion jockey Nash Rawiller, who picked up the George Moore Medal for his premiership success, plus the coveted Bart Cummings Medal for the most outstanding performance by a trainer or jockey.

Chris Waller had a night to remember as his horses picked up three awards - Pressday (best two-year-old), Rangirangdoo (best sprinter/miler) and Metal Bender (best middle distance).

Other major winners were Jessicabeel (best stayer), Faint Perfume (Queen of the Autumn), Brilliant Light (provincial horse of the year) and Sniper's Bullet (country horse of the year).

Peter Snowden won the Tommy Smith Medal for Sydney's premier trainer and Tommy Berry collected the Theo Green Medal for the leading apprentice of the year.

NSWROA president Ray McDowell said more than $100,000 was raised at the awards ceremony for Redkite, a charity organisation that provides support for children and young people with cancer and their families.

Melito scooped the main awards after a superb season where she raced 14 times for three wins, six seconds and three thirds.

She contested an incredible nine Group One events during her three-year-old season, winning the T.J. Smith Stakes and Winter Stakes, ran seconds in the Thousand Guineas, All Aged Stakes, BTC Cup and Stradbroke Handicap, and a third in the Doomben 10,000.

No three-year-old has contested as many Group One races in a season since Slight Chance ran 10 times at the highest level in 1992-93, winning four Group One races.

"Melito is just a pleasure to train," Ryan enthused.

"It's rare for a filly to have so many races at Group One level in one season and maintain her form.

"I think what helps her is her attitude to life. She's very laid-back, nothing worries her, nothing seems to upset her.

"She copes with everything, eats well, never pulls in her work. She just wants to help you all the time - and saves her best for raceday."

Ryan revealed $1.5 million earner Melito has been back in work for two weeks in preparation for a comeback in the Group Three $150,000 Australia Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley on Cox Plate Day on October 23.

"I've given myself 12 weeks to get her ready for that race at Moonee Valley," Ryan said.

"It's nice timing as we don't need to rush her preparation.

"She will go to the Patinack Farm Classic at Flemington on the final day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival and then we will assess whether we continue her race preparation or give her a break for the autumn carnival.

"The options are to look at Hong Kong or maybe Perth but we also have next year to think about.

"There's a chance we could get her ready for Dubai in March or just stay home and run in the weight-for-age sprint races that she contested this autumn.

"We don't need to go to a handicap race again if we don't want to. There is plenty of suitable races for her right through to Brisbane next winter."