Young driver Lily Small finds her captain

By Jordan Gerrans

From never having sat in the sulky behind a pacer in 2023 to winning a race at Redcliffe in the bike this week – it has been a steep learning curve for Queensland’s Lily Small. 

The 23-year-old reinswoman achieved the feat on Sunday evening around ‘The Triangle’ circuit when a horse that is close to her heart landed the prize over 1780 metres. 

In a way, the result for Small and Gidup Captain was inevitable.

As Small has not grown up around the industry, but had a background with horses generally, she needed to learn how to drive from scratch when she started her pursuit in the sport. 

She did not go through the mini-trotting ranks, which the majority of harness participants compete in as youngsters. 

She only had her first trial drive about a year ago. 

Gidup Captain – or Nugget as he is known around the stables - was the first horse she ever jumped in the sulky behind back in 2023 when she was learning her craft.

When she was searching for a pacer to drive in her required trials to be approved to compete in races, she was quick to purchase him. 

And, at her third official drive in a race – it was the gelding who provided her maiden triumph in the sport as a reinswoman.

“He was waiting for me,” Small said of Gidup Captain. 

Small first came across the now seven-year-old gelding when she was working for the leading Butler stable a few years ago. 

While Gidup Captain is a horse close to her heart, he is not blessed with an abundance of pace.

He won a couple of races for the Butler team before being moved on to another stable. 

The idea was floated for Small and her fiancé Bryse McElhinney to take on the gelding to retrain in retirement. 

But, as Small was keen to join the driving ranks in the Sunshine State, he was kept in work with McElhinney as the trainer so Small could rack up her trial drives.

The gelding has had more trials than proper race starts over the last couple of years to prepare Small for her new venture in the sport.

“He is such a good little horse,” Small said.

“He has got the best temperament; he is more like a dog than a horse. He could live in our house, if he could.

“He is really cool, I ride him and take him to the beach and on trail rides. He is not just a racehorse to me.

“He is the type of horse that likes to be around a small team, I think, which has helped get the best out of him.

“He enjoys being spoilt and not being treated like a racehorse, he gets treated like a pet with us.”

From a second row draw, the fledgling driver fired Gidup Captain up before the home turn on Sunday night as she travelled wide into the race.

Those were McElhinney’s instructions to Small pre-race and it delivered in spades as the gelding scored by five metres in the finish. 

“He found a little bit more for me on the line and kicked on,” Small said.

“It is something that I never thought I would be able to achieve as I did not grow up in the industry.

“It is really, really hard when you do not have a family background in harness racing or work for a really big stable.

“That is why I had to get this horse because without him, I would have lacked opportunities.”

As harness racing analyst Darren Clayton notes, it was also a drought-breaking win for the seven-year-old gelding, ending a 571-day streak since his last victory, which was also at Redcliffe.

“Mixing her equine pursuits, Small recently completed her trial drives to gain her race day licence and it was aboard Gidup Captain that she took her first race drive,” Clayton said.

“That was at Marburg last week where she went agonisingly close to winning at her very first attempt as she finished a close second.

“At Redcliffe on Thursday, Small was given her first drive for an outside stable, partnering Rock Nien to fourth for trainer Tayla Gillespie.”

As well as working for the Butler stable, Small also spent time learning her craft under the guidance of Doug Hewitt.

McElhinney joined Small in the winning celebrations on Sunday night while members of the Anforth family were also on hand.

“It felt really good, especially because I have put a lot of hard work into it and the horse is pretty special to me,” she said.

“I felt heaps of support from everyone because I have not grown up in this industry.

“I have had heaps of support from Bryse, as well as a lot of other people, as I have asked a lot of questions and stuff.

“It has felt so good to be supported by everyone.

“It was really, really exciting to be able to share it with Bryse and the Anforth family, who came out for the photo and are some of my closest friends.”