Rhein's world as new era for Sewell dynasty commences

By Jordan Gerrans

If Rhein Sewell can look back on his training career when it comes to an end and say he is half as respected as his grandad Errol, then he will be more than content.

Rhein officially took the steering wheel of the Sewell North Queensland racing dynasty when the new season started on the first of this month.

At the same time, revered five-time Townsville Cup-winning trainer Errol officially retired from the conditioning ranks at 85 years of age.

After a few months of conversation with his grandad, Rhein took on the training duties for the family's horses and had his first starter in a race on Saturday afternoon, which coincided with Townsville Cup day.

To celebrate Errol’s enormous contribution to racing in the region, the Townsville Turf Club named a race after the retiring great of the industry.

With a horse that his grandad handed him, Rhein almost pulled off a fairytale result as his maiden starter Oh My Hat ran second in the 1300 metre event.

The 23-year-old Rhein has now turned his attention to more racing in the 2024 Northern Winter Carnival as his team aims north for Cairns’ Cannon Park in the coming weeks.

Rhein would be a familiar face to many punters as he is a regular race day strapper at Cluden Park for his family's horses as well as other stables, including Cairns’ Stephen Massingham.

He is still beaming about the time he was able to lead-in the great The Harrovian on race day for the Massingham stable.

It would be hard to find anyone as universally admired as Errol Sewell in the racing industry and his grandson most certainly understands that having shadowed him for years.

“If I can be half the trainer and person my grandad is – then I will be happy,” Rhein said.

“He is so well respected.

“I don’t think I can be as good as him as a trainer (laughs).”

While Errol – who will forever be linked to his three-peat of Townsville Cup winners with the champion Party King - is retiring, he is not stepping away from the caper all together.

Errol last prepared a winner in May and had a starter just last month at Cluden Park.

For the last few years, Errol has been aided by Rhein and his father Darin at Cluden Park track work every morning.

It will be the same going forward, just Rhein is the trainer by name.

“I’ve done what I wanted to do and my family has been there the whole way,” Errol said.

“Rhein is a natural, a real natural.  It just comes to him. He’s a good kid who’s willing to help anyone.

“I’ll be there to help him. I’m applying for a strapper's license.”

The Townsville Turf Club named the main grandstand after the grand galloper at Cluden Park after he won the famous staying event in three straight years - 2000, 2001 and 2002.

He is the only horse to do it in three consecutive years in the history of the time-honoured event dating back to 1884.

As well as the five Townsville Cups, Errol also won a host of other feature NQ races and multiple training premierships.

To have someone of his grandad’s experience and knowledge right beside him every step of the way, Rhein is not taking that for granted.

“I call more of the shots now compared to what it was previously but I still am listening to my grandad, he still knows a lot more than me so I try and learn as much as possible,” the rookie trainer said.

“To still be able to have him here to get advice or I ask him questions, it is really good. Many people do not have that support when they start training.

“But, for what he has done in his career, it is still good to lean on him.”

Oh My Hat was transferred from Errol’s name to Rhein’s before Saturday’s race but the young trainer has been busy at the sales snapping up a number of new gallopers as well.

He has recently picked up Vadamos Queen from leading trainer Annabel Neasham as well as maiden horse Looming One.

With the Cairns leg of the northern carnival on the horizon, that is where the newcomers to NQ are heading.

“I think they go pretty good and they will go to Cairns next Saturday and hopefully they can run well,” the smiling youngster said.

“I think Oh My Hat will go to a race at Bowen on the same day.”

Rhein believes having three gallopers in work as well as his day job is a perfect balance at this stage of his time in racing.

Rhein was imagining a dream debut on Saturday when hoop Adrian Layt put roughie Oh My Hat into the race in the home straight but he was just glad to see his first starter run well.

“It was a different feeling, when he loomed up I thought he was going to get past the winner (Early Fusion),” Rhein said.

“The winner was just too good on the day but knowing the horse was in my name – it was a feeling I had never felt before at the races when I had been leading them in or one of my grandad’s horses.

“Working for other people and leading the good horses, you always want those horses to do well and win but when it is your own, I felt a little nervous before the race.

“I was just hoping he would run a good race – and he did – so that is all I was worried about.

“If he had won the race it would have been a fairytale result, it would have been perfect – but that is racing.”