The racing world is in mourning following the news that New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame trainer Mike Moroney passed away in Melbourne this morning at the age of 66.
Moroney, a protégé of legendary trainer Dave O’Sullivan, founded Ballymore Stables in his hometown Matamata in the early 1980s and his almost immediate success led to the establishment of a complementary stable in Australia in 1997.
Initially based in Adelaide, his win with Second Coming in that year’s Victoria Derby led to Moroney being allocated stabling at the historic Chiquita Lodge at Flemington. From there he became a Melbourne Cup-winning trainer in 2000 with Brew, and for good measure Second Coming finished third.
Moroney was inducted to the New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame in May 2023, less than a year after his father Denny, who could fairly be described as his greatest influence, had passed away at age 93.
Moroney senior introduced him and his younger brother Paul to racing, not forgetting that their mother Mary was the daughter of Charlie and Ellie Casey, the breeders 1960 Centenary Melbourne Cup winner Hi-Jinx.
While Paul was to find his niche as a bloodstock agent, Mike’s beginnings were as a stablehand at Wexford Stables alongside Paul O’Sullivan, and after doing the hard yards together, they were granted their trainer’s licences on the same day and joined Dave O’Sullivan in a three-way partnership at the start of the 1981-82 season.
Moroney took little time to establish his own bona fides when making the decision to go it alone at Ballymore Stables, winning with his very first starter and claiming the first of 55 Group One victories with Imperial Angel in the 1985 New Zealand 1000 Guineas.
Besides Brew and Second Coming, star performers during Moroney’s more than four decades as a trainer included New Zealand Horse of the Year Xcellent, Happyanuniot, a Group One winner in New Zealand and later a winner three times at that level in the United States, VATC 1000 Guineas winner Shizu, and classy sprinting mares Tofane and Roch’N’Horse.
They were both graduates of Ballymore Matamata and found their peak form in Australia, Roch’N’Horse winning the Gr. 1 Newmarket and Champions Sprint at Flemington, and Tofane scoring four times at Group One level across Australia’s three major eastern states.
Pam Gerard was the last of Moroney’s training partners to manage the Matamata operation, and she took sole ownership of Ballymore Matamata last July.
Moroney had become seriously ill in April and took his foreman Glen Thompson into partnership at the start of the current season. One of his rare raceday attendances was to the 2024 Melbourne Cup and the final one was just last Saturday, where he was at Caulfield to be part of Coeur Volante’s return to form in the Gr.3 Mannerism Stakes.
“Mike rang me just yesterday for a chat and he was looking forward to being a guest of the VRC at Flemington on Saturday,” his brother Paul said. “While he had his health challenges, none of us were expecting this, but he passed away peacefully in his sleep.
“It’s comforting to know that his daughter Aleisha and her husband Chad arrived in Melbourne yesterday and were able to spend some enjoyable time with Mike and his partner Karen last night.
“As brothers growing up on the family dairy farm, Mike and I had a fantastic relationship, we were always competitive and shared a passion and fascination for racing fostered by our parents and other family members.
“The greatest quality that led to his success as a trainer was his affinity for animals and his work ethic. He was never flustered, he always made plans, setting goals and working backwards, but all the time having that ability to change things if necessary.
“I’m proud to say that he and I worked well together, combining our skills and always throwing ideas around, all the time challenging each other. So many of Ballymore’s big wins were shared by both of us.
“Since the news broke this morning, I’ve had countless messages and calls, and the one thing that’s come through is how respected and liked Mike was by everyone.
“As one person said, not only was he was a champion trainer, but a champion bloke as well.” - Dennis Ryan, NZ Racing Desk
