Hayden bowled over by strength of Queensland harness racing

By Andrew Smith

Matthew Hayden may be away on international cricket commentary duties, but he will be watching the race that carries his name with great pride this weekend.

The harness code’s innovative slot race The Hayden will have its third running at Albion Park on Saturday night.

Named after the Queensland cricket legend, the race will again be run exclusively for three and four-year-old QBRED horses over 2138 metres.

A minimum $10,000 will be donated to ‘The Hayden Way’ to generate funds for Shoreline, which has provided education and employment opportunities for Indigenous students since 2009.

Hayden said he was thrilled to once again partner with Racing Queensland to help deliver the Group 2 race as part of the Queensland Constellations.

“It's great that it's in its third year and it is a huge honour for our family, and really proud of the fact that we're connected to it, not just by namesake, but the carnival itself,” Hayden said.

“I am also proud of what it means for my charity, which is a really important phase of my life after cricket.

“Unfortunately, cricket is going to take me away from the event, which it has done now for a couple of seasons. 

“But that won't diminish the fact that I'll be watching on with great pride, and the fact that I'm a Queenslander, it makes it even better.”

The Hayden also acts as Racing Queensland’s qualifying race to determine its slot holder into the third running of the world’s richest harness race, the $2.1 million The TAB Eureka at Club Menangle.

The 10 barriers for the race were secured during a slot auction in February which also form a part of the race’s funding.

Debuting in 2023, last year’s iteration of The Hayden continued to raise the bar, with the race being run for over $200,000 in stakes.

In what proved to be a thrilling finish, Free Thinker was too strong, going on to represent Queensland in The TAB Eureka.

Champion trainer Grant Dixon will be looking to go back-to-back in 2025 with Group 1 winner Cool And Classy headlining Saturday night’s field.

Fellow Group 1 winner, the Turpin-trained Rylee Rhayne Bow, is also another headliner for the race which will be run for $216,000.

Also trained by Turpin, Dele Row is set to start as favourite thanks to some recent blistering form, having won seven of his last nine starts.

Hayden said he was proud to see another quality field of QBRED pacers assembled for the event.

“You don't have to scratch beneath the surface of my skin to see that I'm pretty maroon, so it's great to see QBRED horses as the major feature of The Hayden,” Hayden said.

“I'm a very proud Queenslander, and I know that the people that are coming on Saturday are going to be of that same character as well.

“We're going to be sitting somewhere in the heartland of State of Origin at the same time as well, and the Constellations is a great sporting carnival through the winter.

“It’s a really exciting carnival for friends and family, and it's a celebration, not just of the sport itself, but getting together with mates – Albion is one of the iconic locations in the Queensland sporting calendar.”

RQ has committed 10% of all prize money from The Eureka to Shoreline to assist in funding its educational programs.

The charity, which has been running for almost 18 years, is one that is close to Hayden’s heart, having been founded just after he retired from playing international cricket.

“It's an indigenous Pathways program, and we're creating programs that sustain the future of Indigenous kids, in particular on the coastline,” Hayden said.

“The VET courses that our kids are put through gives them access to careers, which gives them access to building self-confidence and self-awareness and self-sustainability as well. 

“There's nothing like getting a dollar after you put in a hard day's work, and you add education to that piece as well and before you know it, you’ve got a great program.

“100% of the funds go into our educational pathways program, so it's really just linking kids in country on country, with the goal of keeping them on country as well…whether it's marine mechanics or hospitality courses, something that keeps kids interested in where they need to be on country.”

Click here for more information on The Hayden.