Blake Shinn's fourth Scobie Breasley Medal win spurs Group 1 goals
Four-time Scobie Breasley medallist Blake Shinn has set sights on more Group 1 success this season.
The champion jockey completed a Scobie Breasley award hat-trick on Saturday night — crowned Victoria's best rider for a third straight season and fourth overall after winning it for the first time in 2005.
Shinn chased a lofty goal to ride 200 winners last season in Victoria and remained on track until a heel injury setback in late May halted the progress.
He returned in July and finished on 146 winners, including 74 metropolitan successes.
PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
Shinn rode three Group 1 winners last season, but only one in Melbourne — the Toorak Handicap aboard Queensland star Antino.
The 31-time Group 1 winner, including the 2008 Melbourne Cup aboard Viewed for the late great Bart Cummings, is determined to build on the tally.
'I set the goal to try and win 200 (races) last year,' Shinn said.
'We were on track and we had the hiccup, which set me back … I would've gone close.
'I'll try and focus more on the Group 1s (this season) and target that.
'I want to be a bit more careful with my work ethic because it is quite demanding on your body going to a lot of the provincial meetings.
'I'm not saying I won't go to them because I will, but it is very demanding the work.
'It definitely paid dividends, but this season the goalposts will change and hopefully that will pay dividends.'
Despite all the success last season, including a second metropolitan premiership in three seasons and milestone 2000th career winner, Shinn rated the win on Burlington Gate on February 27, the day trainer Michael Moroney died, as his most special moment.
'Mike had a profound impact on a lot of people in the industry and he had a profound impact on me,' an emotional Shinn said.
'To honour his legacy on that day, the day he passed, definitely was a highlight.'
Fierce competitor and professional Shinn, a model of consistency, has dominated the Victorian riding ranks since he returned home from Hong Kong three years ago.
READ: Ciaron Maher stayer makes Melbourne Cup statement at Moonee Valley
'There's some brilliant jockeys in Melbourne,' Shinn said.
'Craig Williams, Mark Zahra, Jamie Melham, the list goes on.
'I didn't really know what to expect when I came back but I grafted away and did my best.
'What we've been able to achieve is really special, it's a testament to our hard work really.
'You can never feel content, I'm never a person to feel content with what I've done.
'There's always something to try and achieve and strive to get better.
'We'll keep working and hopefully we can keep getting better, I feel I've got a lot to improve on and we'll keep getting better … but to accomplish what I have in Melbourne, I'm pretty happy with that.'
Shinn attributed his success to a close-knit support network, most notably his partner Lucy Yeomans and manager Liam Prior.
Originally published as Four-time Scobie winner Blake Shinn sets Group 1 goals
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
17 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Steve Allen never won in 214 PGA Tour starts but has three wins on Champions Tour in 2025
More than 20 years after his crowning achievement, winning the Australian Open, financial need turned Steve Allen to the Champions Tour in the US. Now three wins later and with more than $3m in prizemoney, things are no longer a' little bit tight' for the 51-year Victorian, who has tasted victory again. Allen, the 2002 Australian Open champ who never won on the US PGA Tour, took down a field including major champions Ernie Els and Darren Clarke to record a one-shot win over 2009 British Open winner Stewart Cink at the Boeing Classic. It's a remarkable turn of events for Allen, who had to go through qualifying school to get on the Champions Tour and has racked up $3.1m in prizemoney across 2024 and 2025, with $2m coming on the back of his three wins this year. Allen found it hard to explain his late-career success but said not worrying about money now helped a bit. 'Yes, definitely, definitely less stress, I think. You know, coming through Q-School to get on this tour and having a chance at 50 to play golf for money is amazing, so it's all bonus,' he said. 'I've been off the main tour since 2009, so things get a little bit tight there when you're not making any money. I think with that, matured a bit, not getting ahead of myself, not stressing about things and just playing and seeing what happens. 'Like I said, I'm not trying to force it. I'm not getting upset when things go wrong, I'm just trying to play and have fun. 'I think I found a bit of a groove with my swing. I think I'm more aware of what I'm doing wrong when it goes wrong. I had a fairly tough few years there, so when things do start to go wrong there, I'm not panicking anymore. "There's a lot of jackets in golf. It's nice to have one." @SAllan66 gets to add to his wardrobe thanks to the trophy @BoeingClassic 😂 — PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) August 11, 2025 'Beginning of last year I had a few tournaments where I didn't play very well, so I'm going into today, just let it happen. I'm not trying to force it, I'm not trying to push it, I'm just trying to play.' Allan played 214 US PGA Tour events and 164 more on the US secondary tour without a win before turning into a trophy hunter after turning 50, the qualification age to play on the Champions Tour.
News.com.au
39 minutes ago
- News.com.au
‘An Indigenous Australian icon': Cathy Freeman and Greg Inglis to reunite for special event this weekend
South Sydney forward Tallis Duncan wasn't born when Cathy Freeman won gold in 2000 in what is arguably the greatest moment in Australian sporting history, which is why he's pinching himself that he gets to meet her this weekend as part of the NRL's Gadhu Gathering at Allianz Stadium. Three matches will be played across three days as the game celebrates Indigenous Round, with the Rabbitohs to take on the Eels on Saturday night. Club legend Greg Inglis will lead the team onto the field, while Freeman will ring the club's legacy bell as they enter Allianz Stadium. The hero of the 2000 Sydney Olympics joined the Rabbitohs in the sheds after their 2014 grand final victory and shared a photo with Inglis at the time that she described as 'the best sporting moment of my life'. 'It's one of those moments that you've got to pinch yourself because you're looking at an Indigenous Australian icon,' Duncan said on Monday, having been born two years after Freeman's golden run. 'I've only seen her on murals and walls and in YouTube videos, so that's something that's pretty special and makes you look at how far I've come on my journey to be able to be run out by 'GI' and to have Cathy ring the bell. It's pretty cool. '(Winning gold) is something you learn about growing up. You see the run and that was amazing, but then you learn a bit about what was behind it and there was a bit more going on than just the run. 'I reckon it was pretty amazing what she did, and she's definitely someone I look forward to seeing on the weekend.' Veteran Jack Wighton will miss the match through suspension and was clearly disappointed to not be involved in the culturally significant event. 'It's a little bit of salt in the wounds,' he said. 'I'm missing out on playing in this jersey and representing in such a great weekend with the three games, and then I hear Cathy and Greggy are leading the boys out. 'I asked if I could at least catch up and say hello. I've got to get a photo at least.' Proud to have 11 Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander players in our full-time squad â�¤ï¸�🖤ðŸ'›ðŸ'šðŸ'™ðŸ¤� — South Sydney Rabbitohs ðŸ�° (@SSFCRABBITOHS) August 4, 2025 Inglis is doing incredible things in the community with his Goanna Academy and the Stick With It campaign, which comes as no surprise to Duncan, who is one of 11 Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander players in the South Sydney squad. 'I idolised him for every week but three when he played Origin for Queensland,' he said. 'He was amazing and was one of those players that you were in awe of when you watched them. 'Even though he played the same game, you felt he was on a different level to what you'd ever seen. He was one of the best players I saw growing up.' Wighton is only in his second year at the club but has embraced being a leader and has been amazed by the work the Souths Cares group does in the community. 'As an Indigenous person, but also as a senior player at this club, (I've embraced being a leader),' he said. 'We've been in a tough patch this year, so it's been a place where it's been tough to be a senior player, but it's also such an honour because you have so many young bright eyes and young superstars who just want to represent and do this club proud. 'To be a leader and see so many kids who want to make a difference (is great).'
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
‘Winning games by 50 is not going to help us': Storm begins brutal finals preparation with grand final rematch against Panthers
Some teams would appreciate a soft month of footy heading into the finals, but Storm prop Stefano Utoikamanu says his side welcomes their brutal run home that starts with a showdown against the team looking to win a fifth title in a row. The Panthers beat Melbourne in last year's decider and have won nine matches in a row to go from last spot after 12 rounds into the top four on the back of last week's thumping win in Newcastle. Thursday's game is the start of a brutal month for the Storm who then face the Bulldogs (third), Roosters (ninth) and finish with a trip north to take on the Broncos (sixth) as they look to secure a top-two finish. They've already beaten Penrith this year and knocked them off twice in the 2024 regular season, with stiff competition in August set to be the perfect preparation for them in the finals. 'I wasn't here last year, but a lot of the boys here played in the grand final,' Utoikamanu said. 'Penrith didn't really start the year that well, but I think they've won nine straight now so you can see them as the in-form team of the comp, so it's going to be a good game this week. 'For us, the finals aren't far away. Those four teams (that we're playing) are all going to be in the finals probably, so it's definitely a good preparation. I'd rather this (than winning by 50). 'Finals footy is a different game. I haven't even played in the finals before, but speaking to the other boys, it's probably going to be reffed a little differently and I think it's going to be more of a grind. 'Winning games by 50 is not going to help us, so these next few games is good preparation for us.' The Storm will be without injured halfback Jahrome Hughes, but their defence has lifted with him out of the side, with the premiership favourites conceding just 12 points in their past two outings. Utoikamanu has also lifted since he played the final two State of Origin games for NSW, with coach Craig Bellamy praising his impact through the middle in wins over the Eels and Broncos. 'I've felt like I probably had to step up a little bit, especially coming out of Origin and being an Origin player,' the prop said. 'It still feels a bit surreal to me that I played Origin this year, but coming out of that, I feel like I had to prove something a little bit. 'Coming here has probably been the biggest move of my career so far. 'Craig always tells us to play to our strengths, and I feel like I've been doing that every week.'
