Golden opportunity for Lang to create history

By Jordan Gerrans and Andrew Smith

With a golden opportunity to be the first female to lift the city riding title in Brisbane, Emily Lang can extend her healthy lead in the premiership with a smart book of engagements on Saturday at Eagle Farm.

With reigning champion James Orman granted an extension of his Hong Kong licence until the conclusion of the 2024-25 season, it has thrown the Brisbane jockeys premiership race wide open.

Orman had a stranglehold on the title again this season before departing overseas, already having 45 winners to his name in town.

With the popular Orman now off the scene for the remainder of the campaign, Lang and former champion apprentice Angela Jones are in the box seat to create history.

If Lang or Jones were to claim the premiership – they would be the first female to do so in the Sunshine State.

Lang – who is still an apprentice – heads the field with 47 winners prior to Saturday’s city meeting while Jones is four behind.

The 24-year-old Lang extended her lead on Wednesday when she scored aboard Certainlycan for her boss Tony Gollan.

The smiling Lang is not letting any talk of the premiership get in the way of her main goal of riding winners but admits it would be a special occasion if one of the girls could prevail.

“It is a great honour to win any sort of premiership, especially at this level and especially for female riders,” Lang said.

“I wouldn’t really be disappointed if I ran second to Ange or not.

“It is great to be getting the support I am receiving now and hopefully I can continue that through as my claim starts to come down lower and lower.”

With the winter carnival fast approaching, Lang recognises her city opportunities may dwindle in the coming weeks as the high-profile Sydney and Melbourne riders become more prominent in Queensland.

On the other hand, Jones more than held her own during the carnival last year in black-type company and will be hopeful of retaining a solid number of rides consistently.

Lang can kick clear in the title race early on Saturday.

Free Carry for her boss Gollan and Lindsay Gough’s Mahagoni are favoured runners in the opening two races on the program.

With eight rides in total on Saturday, Lang will need to wait to the last race for her next best chance to add to her season total – according to the bookmakers – as she partners with Set To Shine for her master Gollan.

Jones has a book of six rides on Saturday with Devastate, Blue Spinel and Anavinci through the middle of stages of the program her best chances of gaining ground on Lang.

The two female jockeys predominately ride for Brisbane’s leading trainer Gollan and the premiership chase is a topic Lang has discussed with her boss.

“It is something that puts on a little bit of added pressure,” Lang said.

“Tony has said to me before that I don’t need to be worrying about premierships, I just need to be improving.

“The more you improve, the better I will get and more opportunities will come.

“It is definitely harder for apprentices over the carnival time, generally the rides start to slow down, so I need to make the most of the Wednesdays and Saturdays at the moment.”

If Lang is to lift the city riding title, she will be the first apprentice to do so since Baylee Nothdurft during the 2019-20 campaign.

Nothdurft was the first apprentice to win the Brisbane jockeys premiership in two decades following on from champion hoops Michael Rodd and Zac Purton.

Jace McMurray is about to stitch up the apprentice title on the provincial circuit this season as he bides his time before he shifts his focus to town.

The Gold Coast-based McMurray says Lang is a rider he keeps a close eye on as he builds his career.

“She is a role model, not just for the ladies but for all up-and-coming apprentice jockeys,” McMurray said.

While a female has never won the Brisbane jockeys premiership, several have gone close in recent times.

Just last season Cejay Graham finished second to Orman, despite being a long way back in the winner’s tally, while Jones ran fourth.

Jones finished third two seasons ago behind Orman and Ben Thompson.

Tegan Harrison was a force in town during her apprentice days when she claimed the city apprentice title while she was also highly competitive in the 2015-16 season.

Harrison previously held the record for most Brisbane metropolitan winners in a season by a female jockey with 51, which she set in 2015-16.

Tiffani Brooker rode 50 winners in the 2016-2017 campaign when she ran into fourth in the city title.

“It is obviously in the back of your mind and people like to bring it up a lot, about the premiership,” Lang said.

“It is obviously something that is very exciting and it would be a great privilege to win it.

“At the end of the day, if you worry about things like that too much, it probably distracts you a bit from what you should be worried about.

“I just need to do the best I can for my trainers, connections and trying to get the result.”

Racing Queensland’s Senior Apprentice Coach Shane Scriven says it would a special milestone if Lang or Jones could break through as the first female champion.

“It is an extra push for them – they have that opportunity at their doorstep,” Scriven said.

“Both those girls, there is a pot at the end of the rainbow.

"It is there to be won for them, they just need to keep doing what they are doing and the premiership will take care of itself.

“It would be a feather in their cap and look good on their resume.”