INDUSTRY IN QUEENSLAND FORCED TO FUND ANOTHER LEGAL BATTLE

WE RUN THIS SILKS & SADDLES COLUMN by respected racing writer TERRY BUTTS, courtesy of the NORTH QUEENSLAND REGISTER.

THE Queensland racing industry saw another stash of its dwindling reserves go sideways last week with yet another costly legal battle.

It was the matter of QRL director Bill Andrews v QRL, and you have to wonder why it ever got to a highly expensive argument before a Supreme Court judge and respective teams of solicitors and barristers, funded by an industry that repeatedly cries poor. At least to the real players in the game. And particularly to the battling clubs outside the metropolitan area.

But of course, that is not to say the plaintiff Mr Andrews did not have a very valid case. He claims he was treated poorly in the selection process to appoint two directors to the QRL board, and, in essence, the judge agreed.

As a retiring member seeking reelection, Bill was somewhat miffed that his name was not on the final list of four (from a list of 26 applicants) from which the QRL board had to decide. He challenged the eligibility of two – namely Neville Stewart and Wayne Milner – both having applied for the board vacancies while still chairman of the Toowoomba Turf Club and BrisbaneTurf Club respectively. Bill claimed it was against the constitution.

At the centre of the argument was a recruiting agency that had been contracted by QRL chairman Bob Bentley to conduct the interviews and provide the list. There were questions of partiality and the recruiting officer was subject to some rigorous questioning by barrister RM Derrington (for the plaintiff).

There were no winners in this case – only losers. The industry lost money (reportedly $400,000 all up) and I venture to suggest if the main players were paying from their pockets, it would never have got to court. And it shouldn’t have if plain common sense, plus the good old Aussie spirit of doing the right had prevailed right from the start.

There might have been another loser, too. Fresh from his unflattering performance in the whip fiasco, where he was subject to national ridicule, the QRL and Australian Racing Board chairman Bob Bentley is under the microscope in some quarters for his role in this episode.

But that won’t bother Bob. Just another speed bump in his highly ambitious quest to completely control the racing game in Queensland. If not the world.

And if that means more and more clashes in the Queensland Supreme Court, so be it. And if more money is needed to fund the quest, or an appeal, in the current matter, well, we will just sell off a racecourse. Won’t we, Bob?

They reckon Mackay’s Ooralea is ripe and ready for transformation to another housing estate in the city. And then there’s Cairns of course. Rich in real estate but poor in performance as a race track. So the story goes.

And while in that vein, events at the Sunshine Coast and Rockhampton in recent times might have clubs wary on seeking financial favours from the racing body. Rocky seemed to think the almost completed $6 million track upgrade was QRL exercising its responsibilities. Now the club has been told it is a repayable loan. Oops.

And something similar has allegedly occurred at the Sunshine Coast, after the new-beaut lighting system was installed, not to mention the multimillion dollar dirt (and hardly successful) racing surface.

Yes, another day or month in court is the tip.