The ‘G’ back again in Yarrawonga

Last week, the man popularly known as ‘The G’ (after his christian name) told the Yarrawonga Chronicle: “Nicholas (son) has won two Caulfields – I left them for Nicholas. We’ve got the full set now!”

After first getting on a horse at age “three or four” and riding his first race at age 14, at Flemington, it wasn’t until Hall was 30-years-of-age when his outstanding sporting career really took off.

“I spoke to Lester Piggott and Roy Higgins (champion English and Australian jockeys) and changed a few things,” he explained. Those changes included riding shorter - pulling the irons up and the point of balance was perfected over six months on the training track every day of the week from 4.00am to 8.30am. “I thrived on pressure. I was a very strong rider and risk taker,” Hall admitted.

Winning the race that stops the nation was naturally the biggest highlight of Hall’s career. “Subzero wasn’t the best horse I rode but it tops the list being the Melbourne Cup (which he won by two lengths),” he said.

“The best horse I rode was Mahogany. Other great horses included Super Impose and Doriemus. I got beaten by six centimetres on Doriemus in the Melbourne Cup by Might and Power.”

Hall also won a Cox Plate, two Golden Slippers and two Victoria Derbies riding for the likes of Lloyd Williams, Sheik Mohammed and Kerry Packer in his amazing 49 Group 1 winners.  

Hall’s connection with Yarrawonga began some 50 years ago. “Jack Dow (father of local identity John Dow) and my dad (Ron) were best mates,” he said. “They were scallywags. They were both jockeys. I became friends with John.”

That friendship with John began at Mildura where John taught him how to water ski. The water skiing and friendship continued soon after at Yarrawonga where Hall spent every summer after the Melbourne Cup with the break on the racing calendar.

“I love Yarrawonga, the Dows and Tripps and met champion blokes like ‘Casey’ (Slattery), ‘Jinx’ Clarke, ‘Pop’ (John Bullldog Lonergan) and ‘Pistol’ (Geoff Hicks), the Murray River, skiing and fishing – catching a red fin,” Hall said, emphasizing that Alan and Kate Tripp have been fantastic supporters to him over a long time.

“They are solid people,” he said. “I used to baby-sit Matt and Liz Tripp in Melbourne. And John’s my best friend.”  

Best mate John Dow described Hall as “a loveable larrikin”. “All trainers said he’d ride a winner on the moon. He knew horses. It’s great to see him back and in good spirits.”

During his spectacular riding career, the Melbourne Cup winner loved a hit of golf, getting his handicap down to 14 at The National Golf Club. Riding resulted in many injuries but Hall always got back on the saddle and scaled great heights he retired from riding in 2002.

Over the past 15 or so years, the riding great, who had no mother after he was aged just two years, has plummeted in dramatic fashion to being broke and homeless due to alcoholism and gambling, being in and out of rehabilitation four times. He laid the blame all on himself.

For the last 11 months, however, The G has got back on the horse, so to speak, and is turning his life around.

He is doing some part-time work and being asked to speak at sportsman’s nights. He has a way to go yet to properly provide for himself in his one-bedroom apartment in Melbourne. The Yarrawonga connection has contributed significantly towards that turnaround. 

Hall is an Ambassador for the Melbourne Cup and was thrilled at being invited recently into the jockeys room before a big programme of races. “I was anxious, didn’t know what sort of reception I’d receive,” Hall said. 

“But it was amazing. They said: ‘Jump in here’ when they were having a photo taken.”

He particularly cherishes the renewed father-son relationship with Nicholas. “We are best mates,” Hall senior said.