Country Spotlight: St George

By Jordan Gerrans

As a community in St George, local builder Josh Vickers believes the town needs more events to participate in for their population.

Based in the Shire of Balonne with a population of around 3,048 people, the people of St George come out in droves for their annual race day held in July.

Hundreds within the area around St George are excited about the St George Jockey Club picking up a second race day for 2022 – to be run this Saturday afternoon as a pick-up meeting from Charleville.

And, Vickers, who has doubled as the club’s president for the last decade – as well as being a local builder – is hopeful St George can make the second race day an annual occurrence.

Following on from over $100,000 of the club’s own cash going into their facilities over the last four years – on top of valuable grants, as well – Vickers has even thrown up the prospect of the club hosting a TAB day in the coming years.

“As a club and a committee, we have been aiming for a second race meeting that we can have every year, that is what we have been dreaming about,” Vickers said.

“Hopefully this Saturday could be a stepping stone to show everyone what we can do as a club, that we are capable of a second race meeting every year.

“We have a small but very active committee.

“The town and the community need something else going on, to get dressed up and come have some fun.”

The St George Jockey Club’s improvements in recent years includes all new tie-up stalls, fencing around the tie-up stalls and enclosure, shade up over the betting ring, a new photo finish tower and new barriers, as well.

St George-based trainer Pat Webster, who claimed the 2021 Country Stampede, is of the belief the town would support more racing.

“The club have got a good group of people there on the committee and they all have a bit of go in them,” Webster said.

“Things are improving, clubs are putting more money back into their facilities.

“The grounds look enormous these days; you could have a wedding out there it is that nice. They do a good job.”

St George has been aided in recent years as well by grants from the Gambling Community Benefit Fund and the Country Racing Program.

Vickers takes pride in the club putting extra prize money into races held at their track so more money flows back into the industry through trainers and owners.

The club have focused in on improving their infrastructure over the past decade.

And, with club’s such as Thangool, Innisfail, Ewan and Nanango being elevated from non-TAB to Sky Racing broadcast in recent years, those in St George are daring to dream.

“Not much had been done in the 20 or 30 years before that and we really need to get out of the dark ages,” Vickers said.

“We needed to come into the 21^st century and we have really good facilities now – new stewards tower, tie-up stalls, a big shed and new barriers and fencing.

“We have really tidied up our facilities and we only really have a few projects to go until we have a set of facilities that could host a TAB day, to be honest.”

The club’s track is also a multi-purpose facility.

“We are trying to put back into our club, community and facilities,” Vickers, who also owns a few locally trainer gallopers, said.

“We have two other clubs there – the polo cross and the pony club – and they use the facilities a bit, as well.”

In 2022, Webster is the only trainer based in the town, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather who also prepared gallopers at the black soil track.

He has been around the horses since he was a young fella and recalls many more trainers being based in the town in years hone by.

And, while more trainers being based in St George would help the local industry, Webster can see the benefits of it being a one trainer town for now.

“It is good to have the track to yourself – there is no doubt about that,” Webster said with a laugh.

“There is a lot of times if it is wet then I can gallop my horses at lunchtime instead of first thing in the morning, that is one advantage it does have.

“There was quite a racing community in years gone by here.

“The older generation sort of finished up.”

Webster’s father rode in races before turning his hand to training.

Webster is known for travelling his team all around regional Queensland and believes bush racing is on the up.

“I think the younger generation are coming back into it a little bit more now from what I can see,” he said.

“It has picked up in the country, that’s for sure.

“There is lots of people in the area who follow the racing, even if it is just keeping an eye on our results more than anything.”

Webster notes that St George is an excellent town to base himself at, able to head over the border and race at tracks such as Moree and Inverell, while also being close enough to Roma and Dalby and Toowoomba is only four hours away for him to race his higher-grade gallopers at.

St George will host six non-TAB races this Saturday afternoon. 

Country spotlight will be a regular feature that shines a light on the unique and individual racing clubs and participants across Queensland.