Brett ready to revive Simon Told Helen

By Isaac Murphy

In a massive coup for Queensland greyhound racing and the wider public, Simon Told Helen is back and under the care of a delighted Tony Brett.

The trainer will be hoping to send out like the champion he is with a seventh Group 1 Brisbane Cup now firmly on the radar for the prolific kennel.

Simon Told Helen was peerless throughout 2020, winning no less than four Group 1 finals and coming close in a handful of others.

Connections deemed it was time to retire to stud, but after some minor complications in the breeding barn, Brett was the man to receive the phone call about a return to racing last week.

“I didn’t know anything about a return to the track, it’s only been in the last four of five days when the owners got in touch with me about taking him and next thing I know I was picking him up from the airport Friday night,” Brett said.

“The decision came about because while he was making a good amount of sperm it didn’t have the fertility to freeze, so Paul and Michelle (Westerveld) from Meticulous Lodge advised the owners the best course of action was to get him right physically and mentally away from the process.

“The syndicate then had the decision to put him in the backyard for a few months and try again or use the time to get him back to racing while he still had plenty in the legs and fortunately, they went with the latter.”

The Emma’s Boys syndicate have enjoyed the ride of their lives with the chaser, chalking up over $900,000 in earnings throughout his glittering career.

When they chose to unretire the champion, it was their Queensland representative who highly recommended Brett as they look to join the elusive million-dollar club.

“There’s five blokes in the syndicate who own him, but the one I’ve been mostly in touch with is John O’Toole who lives in Queensland,” Brett said.

“I met him when I was presenting the Queensland Derby trophy to him after Simon Told Helen won in 2019, we struck up a bit of a friendship and he always said when we get a couple of pups from the next litter we’ll send them up to you, but I never expected Simon Told Helen.

“It was at his suggestion the dog come to me, having experience at stud I can monitor him every couple of months and the timing was right to have him at his peak for the Group 1 Brisbane Cup in early July.”

Brett said he would’ve given his right arm for a dog like Simon Told Helen, but he knows he’s putting his reputation on the line in the coming months.

“When I got the call I couldn’t say yes quick enough, any trainer in their right mind would have taken him on, but I’m aware from experience it’s going to bring its fair share of pressure,” he said.

“I had Keybow in a somewhat similar situation a few years ago, which worked out well with him getting picked for the Top Gun and going out on a good note and I’m hoping to get this dog back to his best too.

“I said to the owners if the dog doesn’t like what I do with him up here I’m the one who’s going to look stupid and they still had the faith to send him, so fingers crossed we can deliver for them.”

Having only arrived last night, Brett was hesitant to single out a return date but was rapt to see the dog hadn’t lost his chasing edge.

“He’s been out for about 10 weeks and I wasn’t sure what kind of shape he was going to be in when he arrived, but I took him for a walk this morning and he was just switched on - he’s still got the mentality of a race dog,” he said.

“I sent a text to Paul and Michelle at Meticulous Lodge and said ‘I think I know why he’s not quite ready for stud, his mind’s still of racing’ - he wanted to chase anything that moved.

“I weighed him this morning, he’s up half a kilo on his racing weight, but once I give him a couple of slips at Ipswich and a couple of trials at Albion for fitness, he’ll be just about ready to go.”

At just over three-years-old the dog is still in his racing prime, but with demand through the roof for a return to stud, Brett is determined to make the most of his time.

“If everything goes well, we’ve got an ideal window to get him back in shape for his number one target being the Group 1 Brisbane Cup in winter and possibly a Million Dollar Chase campaign,” he said.

“With a dog like him those are the races you talk about but first thing’s first I need to get him back under race conditions, I won’t put a date on it but as soon as he tells us he’s ready we’ll go.

“I’ve likely got six months at this most with him before he goes back for another crack at stud, so I want to make sure I do absolutely everything right to maximise that window and I’d love to send him out a winner.”

Simon Told Helen will head a quartet of winning hopes towards the Group 1 Brisbane Cup, a race Brett has owned over the years including last year’s win with Black Opium.

“We’re up to six Brisbane Cups and to have a dog like Simon Told Helen come into your care along with Sentenced, What A Debacle and Hara’s Clyde has me dreaming of seven,” Brett said.

“I’ve had some strong hands in the past but if I can get those four up and running, I don’t think I’ve ever had a deeper team heading into the race.

“Sentenced is about two weeks away coming back from his injury, What A Debacle races Sunday at Capalaba in preparation for the Cup and Hara’s Clyde is touch and go to defend his Capalaba crown with a couple of niggles, but we’d love to go back to back if he’s right.”