Young Maher hoping for breakthrough win at Ipswich

By Glenn Davis

Victoria’s Ciaron Maher is a household name in Australian racing, but a younger sibling is hoping to make his own mark from Queensland’s Gold Coast.

Declan Maher, Ciaron’s younger brother, has been based at the Gold Coast for only six weeks but is hopeful of landing his first winner in his adopted state when he heads to Ipswich on Wednesday.

Maher was Ciaron’s stable foreman at their Ballarat stables in Victoria for seven years before making the decision to go it alone as a trainer in his own right in Queensland.

“I worked for Ciaron at Ballarat for seven years but all-up I worked for him for 15 years,” Maher said.

“We had 200 horses in work at Ballarat at any one time.

“It was a big place, but it was too hard to do my own thing.”

The 42-year-old Maher has held his own trainer’s license since the 2016-17 campaign but only dabbled training a small team of his own while in charge of the Ballarat barn.

“I mucked around training a few on my own before I decided it was time for a sea change,” he said.

“I’ve got a young boy who has just turned two, so my partner and I decided it was time to make the move.”

Maher has 20 boxes at the Gold Coast and already has half the stable filled.

“I always knew it would be steady as she goes to start off with until I get to know the lay of the land,” he said.

Since moving to the Gold Coast, Maher has had three starters but is yet to find his first winner.

However, he’s hopeful of breaking the ice with Perhaps Perhaps who starts in the Maiden Plate over 1690 metres at Ipswich.

“Perhaps Perhaps was also entered for the Maiden over 1350 metres but I thought she was more suited over the mile,” Maher said.

Perhaps Perhaps is making her stable debut for Maher after being formerly trained at Port Macquarie by Marc Quinn.

The rising five-year-old daughter of Written Tycoon hasn’t started since finishing seventh in an 1800 metre Class 1 Plate at Inverell in late May.

“She’s owned by breeders, Riverstone Lodge, so it would be great for them if she can win a metropolitan maiden,” Maher said.

“She trialled well at the Gold Coast recently when I put a tongue-tie on her, so I think she’s a good each-way chance at Ipswich."