Tony Riley
One of the great characters of South African horseracing died in New Zealand on Tuesday after a short illness. Tony Riley was one of those larger than life individuals who once met was never forgotten.
A well-known breeder and one of his closest friends, Bob Woodham, pays tribute to a man who loved horses and lived life to the fullest.
Tony related easily to a variety of people both in and out of the thoroughbred industry, a great collector of stories and history of breeding and racing, he had amazing recall right up to shortly before his passing and had been collaborating with me on a history of the trainers and breeders of the Midlands area in times gone by.
Born in England at Whitsbury Manor Stud in Wiltshire, where his father worked, the family moved to Kenya when his father was contracted as a trainer jockey.
The family moved yet again to the Natal Midlands where his father managed a stud.
Tony moved to Durban as a young teenager and began an apprenticeship as a farrier, operating mainly around the now defunct Newmarket stables and had some amazing stories of the times there.
From there, he moved into stud managing at Mooi River running Denisar Stud ( now home of Balmoral Pre Training) who at that time stood two stallions and some 130 mares.
Ever keen to broaden his horizons Tony moved on to Newmarket in England and took the well respected Stud Manager’s course and was named top student in 1974. He went on to work at both the Equine Research Unit and worked as an assistant for one season to leading vet of the day, Don Simpson.
Tony Riley
He always had a wish to train horses and before returning to SA he worked as a pupil assistant for Harry Thompson Jones, then a leading N.H. trainer and who trained the mighty two mile chaser Tingle Creek.
Back home he returned to the Midlands to manage Glen Lynden Stud, a boutique stud in Mooi River where they stood 2 stallions and some 50 mares and prepared yearlings .
The training bug bit again and he moved to Cape Town and started training with a small string and managed a group winning juvenile before he reluctantly called it a day.
He started as bloodstock agent, firstly with another very good judge of a horse, Colin Palm and then on his own in Durban and purchased a number of very good racers for his two brothers Patrick and Michael, who were both training by this time.
Overseas he found that brilliant sprint filly Sunera for Des Scott.
The training bug bit yet again and he seized the chance to open a stable in Harare. He soon stamped his mark becoming Champion Trainer for three years .
During that time he bought yearlings in Australia for clients and in the first draft he had three stakes winner most famously Azabu Park and the mighty Gr 1 winner Ruby Clipper, dam of Gr1 winner and top young sire Seventh Rock.
Tony Riley
Now married to Margie, he wanted to test his skills and moved to Singapore and for the next 4 years trained with some success but sadly contracted a form of cancer that proved debilitating.
The family moved to New Zealand, just down the road from the famous Cambridge Stud, where he and Margie got involved in rural Real Estate dealings.
To keep his hand in he advised and sold stallion shares for some of the local farms but over the past 12 months it was clear from our frequent telephone marathons that his breathing was not right and he eventually told me that he had a congenital lung condition that took all of his father and two brothers Patrick and Michael , who predeceased him.
We had endless chats with him recalling the times we shared in Zimbabwe and some amazing stories but as time went on it was clear to me that our chats would last much longer and whilst expecting the call, it was a great shock when Margie called to say he had passed away.
A good friend who will be greatly missed by my family and his many friends here.
Tony leaves Margie and a stepson Kenneth, Shannon, Gregg and Paul from his previous marriages.
RIP.
