Waterhouse & Smith by John Ellicott

Author:John Ellicott
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Hardie Grant Books
Published: 2014-02-15T00:00:00+00:00

Stable Love

During this period Tommy started to take long overseas trips, partly due to the stress of running such a large stable and also to fulfil his yearning to learn from overseas racing operations. Ernie and Dick Smith capably filled the hole while their brother Tommy was away, but things went disastrously wrong one time when Tulloch Lodge’s stable hands bunged on a strike in Tommy’s absence, claiming poor conditions at the stables. Most stable hands and apprentices lived on site and a bunch of them locked themselves in a stable room. As the strike proceeded, foreman Gil Ings, a small man (even shorter than his boss but as strong as a lion), and the apprentice jockeys were forced to shoulder all the track work with Tommy’s large team of horses.

‘Youse can all stay in there,’ an angry Gil shouted at the gang of stable revolutionaries.

The strike went on for several days and Ernie decided to get a group of strong-arm blokes from Paddington to kick the door down and rough up the recalcitrants. It led to an inquiry by the Australian Jockey Club into the roughing-up of the stable employees and it also precipitated a falling-out between Gil and Tommy.

Tommy was sticking by Ernie, of course, who was facing possible disqualification over his actions. Tommy urged Gil to take one side, but Gil stood his ground, and said he would tell the committee everything he knew. It led to a big blow-up and Gil walked out. He’d never again speak to Tommy, the man he trusted and called boss, but on the other hand he would never let anyone say a bad word against Tommy. Tommy could instil loyalty like no other, even in those who had left or had been given marching orders.

After the incident, much to Tommy’s disgust and other people’s laughter, truckloads of mattresses and linen started arriving at Tulloch Lodge as members of the public went into action in support of the stable hands.

The departure wasn’t a bad move for Gil. He went on to be foreman for Arthur Ward, looking after many of media baron Sir Frank Packer’s fine horses before getting his own trainer’s licence in 1967. Many of those who left Tulloch Lodge were able to use all the skills they had learned from Tommy in great new ventures.

Also very loyal were the three main women in Tommy’s life: his wife Valerie, his secretary Pauline Blanche and, of course, his daughter Gai, born in 1952. Valerie was Tommy’s eyes and ears on their yearly overseas trips. She was private-school educated, coming from a background almost the opposite of Tommy’s, except that they were both Catholic. Valerie was a top-line singer and elocution teacher. She spoke beautifully and sported a lovely smile, traits that Gai inherited.

Valerie and Tommy had each left it until late to find the love of their life. They were both in their thirties when Valerie’s sister Bella introduced them during the Wagga Cup carnival in 1946. It seemed inevitable

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