Fresh from one of his best starts to a new season, “Rocket” Rod Northam is eyeing off a four-pronged assault at Monday’s Tamworth meeting.
The likeable Scone trainer has brought home 11 individual winners from his last 34 runners, an impressive near 33 per cent strike rate across 26 days to kick-start 2025-26.
Scone trainer Rod Northam.Credit: Bradleys
It could have been even bigger, with the yard running three close second-placings at Dubbo early last month before back-to-back placings on Cup day at Narromine.
His latest successes came at Scone last Tuesday, when promising mare Smart Buy swept home to win a Class 1 before tough five-year-old Release Point narrowly landed a strong BM 66.
And Northam will again carry good memories up the road to Tamworth, where he won a maiden 11 days ago with new arrival four-year-old Bullion Hunter.
Northam certainly won’t have to wait long at Tamworth to keep the run going, with improving mare Sebilla, a Benchmark 58 winner at home two weeks ago, contesting the opening BM 66 handicap over 2100m. He steps up Sebilla sharply in distance from the mile.
The stable will then be confident when progressive mare Great Point looks to return to winning ways in a competitive BM 66 handicap over 1400m.
A capable and fit daughter of Bull Point, Great Point progressed through consecutive Saturday Highways in winter before spelling. She then returned with a fast-finishing effort behind promising Peninsula in a BM 66 at Scone on August 19, and has since trained on well.
Great Point is already a Tamworth winner, having claimed a BM 58 when coming from near last back in mid-June.