HORSE RACING
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Punters shouldn't have been so surprised when Byblos Boy saluted at enormous odds for local trainer Shane Kember at Kembla Grange on Wednesday.
Starting an $81 outsider in the 10-strong field, the four-year-old, the bay gelding was making his debut and narrow victory in a three-way finish was a respite for bookies.
The result, however, shouldn't have come as so much of a shock.
Kember came within a whisker of training a 100-1 winner at Kembla with Tarewa Road just a fortnight ago and almost had similar success at Goulburn ;ate last month.
It was only a matter of time before one got job done.
"I have only got the four in work and they are going good," Kember said.
"We just sort of cut down on the numbers to give them a little bit more attention ... It's working."
Byblos Boy had just one trial at Canberra (finishing third of seven over 900m on heavy ground) before his debut.
The gelding came off heels with 200m to go and took a while to wind up in the straight.
Apprentice Brodie Loy got busy in the closing stages and managed to overhaul Happy Diamond with his final stride.
"I own the stallion and the mare and I bred him," the trainer said.
"The stallion [Byblos] is a Group 1-winning stallion out of Hussonet. He had 18 starts, 14 at group level, and a really ordinary book of mares in Australia but has done a fantastic job with them.
"The dam was a maiden who has had three other horses which haven't even looked like winning. We put her to Byblos and got a really nice one."