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Steve O’Halloran – Making His Own Way As A Trainer
By John Curtis
STEVE O’Halloran thought it had to be a misprint!
Looking to expand his horizons from his native Ireland, he was reading through details of three leading Sydney stables who were looking for staff.
“I couldn’t believe it when they mentioned a 3am start; I was sure that couldn’t be right,” O’Halloran, now training at Hawkesbury, said.
“At home we didn’t start work at the stables until six or seven in the morning.”
The 3am start indeed was correct – but it didn’t deter O’Halloran from taking the plunge and joining the stable of racing’s first lady Gai Waterhouse at Royal Randwick.
Australia, though, wasn’t on his radar at first.
In fact, the only thing he really knew about our country was the Melbourne Cup, principally because Irish training wizard Dermot Weld had broken down so many barriers when he captured the famous “two-miler” in 1993 with the first northern hemisphere-trained winner Vintage Crop.
O’Halloran was working for well-known Irish trainer Eddie Lynam (who came to Australia in 2014 with Slade Power for the Group 1 Darley Classic at Flemington, won by Terravista), and felt the urge to travel.
“I had been riding work for Eddie for five years, and still being single, wanted to see a bit of the world,” he said.
“Eddie had friends in America, and recommended I should go there.
“I applied to go to the USA, but unfortunately it was around the time of the infamous 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, and couldn’t get a visa.
“The Irish company I had seen about travelling then suggested Australia, and I thought to myself: ‘That’s the other side of the world’.
“Still, I decided to give it a go and was able to obtain a visa within a couple of hours.
“I was fortunate to get a full year’s visa, which meant I didn’t have to change jobs every three months.
“It was certainly very different joining Gai’s stable at Randwick. At home, it was so big and there were 20 different gallop tracks.
“I didn’t know what to do when I was told to go out six three-quarters on a horse (15 seconds to the furlong).
“I did it by feel and then eventually from a ‘clock in my head’.”
O’Halloran quickly fitted in to Waterhouse’s training routine. “I loved it,” he said.
“Gai focused very strongly on professionalism and always stressed that you had to have a good appearance to reflect well on both yourself and the stable.”
Steve O’Halloran with his Golden Slipper trophy after Vancouver’s 2015 victory.
After 17 years at Tulloch Lodge, O’Halloran called it a day in 2020 when enlisted by prominent owner Paul Fudge to train out of his magnificent 100-hectare property at Moss Vale in the Southern Highlands.
It was an opportunity too good to pass up – but sadly it didn’t last long, though it had nothing to do with O’Halloran.
His first winner for Fudge’s Waratah Thoroughbreds was the Fastnet Rock gelding Riot Act (Travis Wolfgram) in a 1400m Maiden Plate at Nowra on July 3, 2020, and showed that wasn’t any fluke by scoring again with that horse at Goulburn over 1600m 17 days later.
O’Halloran trained eight winners under the Waratah banner; the last being Deep Impact mare Lost Impact (Jay Ford) in an 1800m Maiden Plate at Hawkesbury on March 16 last year.
“Unfortunately, because of illness, Paul last year decided to sell the property (which was subsequently purchased by RacingNSW),” O’Halloran explained.
“It was a bit of a kick in the teeth being out of a job, having a wife and young family.”
Remaining confident in his own ability to train, O’Halloran had to start from scratch again and found a willing ally in Hawkesbury trainer Wayne Attard.
“During my time with Gai, I saddled up runners at different tracks, and liked Hawkesbury,” he said.
“It has a country feel even though it isn’t too far away from the city, and it’s a good area for the kids.
“I was lucky enough to be able to move in at Wayne’s stable block, where there are 20 boxes and it’s a good set-up.”
O’Halloran admits it hasn’t been easy going it alone, but has had the support of a number of Randwick trainers he knew, especially Mark Newnham, who gave him horses to pre-train as he steadily built his own team.
There was light at the end of the tunnel when he broke through at Newcastle on August 6 with a young horse who began his career with leading Melbourne trainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace.
Having only his second start for his new trainer, Martini Crusader at $15 followed a first-up close second at Wyong on July 19 by easily accounting for 1400m Maiden Plate rivals.
Surely a feather in O’Halloran’s cap as the second and third placegetters, who were the fancied runners, both came from leading Sydney yards (Michael Freedman and Chris Waller).
Martini Crusader proved that win was no fluke with an unlucky second, again at Newcastle last Saturday, giving away a huge start after being slow to begin, and then making up a lot of ground in a Class 1 Handicap (1600m).
The stable switch arose courtesy of a link to his lengthy association with the Waterhouse stable.
“I knew Chris Hay from Pulse Racing Thoroughbreds, and Martini Crusader had run a couple of placings at country meetings in Victoria,” O’Halloran explained.
“Some of the syndicate members wanted to move the horse on and others didn’t, and Chris and his son Cameron asked if I would be interested in training him.
“It was a good feeling to win with Martini Crusader at Newcastle. He is a lovely horse, and very straight forward.
“Getting my name out there hopefully will help build my numbers. I’ve got nine horses in work along with eight pre-trainers, and four or five early two-year-olds who obviously are yet to race.”
Dublin-born O’Halloran has come a long way – and not just in distance travelled either – considering his Irish family didn’t have a connection with thoroughbreds, other than sitting with his father watching Ireland and English races on TV each Saturday afternoon.
Obviously, it made an impact even though he had never sat on a horse.
O’Halloran did three months’ work experience with trainer Frank Dunne at Hamwood Stud, where the business operated a thoroughbred stud farm on one side and had their own gallops on the other side.
“Frank’s family owned a department store similar to David Jones and Myer here, and no expense was spared,” he said.
“It was phenomenal experience. They don’t clock the horses at home; instead it is done with the feel of the horse through the reins.”
At the tender age of 15, O’Halloran joined the aptly-named RACE (Racing Academy and Centre of Education) at The Curragh, keen to make the grade to ride in races.
“You spend 10 months being taught the basics and, if you show any potential, get sent to a trainer,” he said.
“I went to Mick Halford in the 1995-96 season, and started riding in 1996.
“He had 15 horses when I was there, and later had around 100 in his care, training for such big owners as the Aga Khan and Godolphin.
“Mick taught me a lot, but being a 10lb claimer, it was very daunting competing against the likes of champions such as Christy Roche, Mick Kinane, Johnny Murtagh and the late Pat Smullen.
“Pat Smullen, in particular, was very helpful.”
O’Halloran rode a winner during the Derby weekend at The Curragh, but increasing weight was knocking at the door, and he tired of saunas and sweating to be able to ride.
“I got sick of it, and decided to get out of the game and go home,” he said.
He did for a few months – but the racing bug bit him and he joined Eddie Lynam’s stable before eventually embarking on his Australian sojourn, which of course became permanent.
O’Halloran met his wife Stephanie 16 years ago after joining Gai Waterhouse’s team, and paid her a fitting tribute.
“Stephanie is a huge part of our business,” he said. “Trying to help run the stable and look after three kids is hard enough, so she is my rock.”
As one of Waterhouse’s trusted lieutenants, O’Halloran became associated with a host of top racehorses.
Names such as Grand Armee, Desert War, Bentley Biscuit, Aqua D’Amore, Theseo, More Joyous, Dance Hero, Pierro, Manhattan Rain, Overreach, Fashions Afield, Vancouver and Farnan readily sprung to mind.
He was closely involved with five of Waterhouse’s Golden Slipper winners, so he knows plenty about getting the best out of young horses.
Now he wants to find a good one of his own. What a story that will be if Steve O’Halloran can add his name as a trainer to the Golden Slipper honour roll!
