With NSW-Victoria border restrictions set to ease in the coming days, Racing NSW has announced horses outside of greater Melbourne can once again be moved across the border to compete in regional meetings.
Because Mick Cornish and Donna Gaskin live in Moama they will be able to attend the meetings despite their stable being based at Echuca.
Under the changes, Victorian horses must spend a minimum of 48 hours at a property used for spelling or pre-training before they are taken to a training facility or racetrack.
The property cannot be at a racecourse itself or where horses are in training.
Cornish said it was nice to finally receive some good news.
“The last five months have been almost unbearable for a lot of people in the racing industry,” he said.
“We've been doing it pretty tough so it's great we are able to get back out on the country tracks.
“We're still unsure of some of the protocols but I'm sure they'll be made pretty clear to us.”
Following the announcement, Cornish said he believed the stable's odds of finding more winners had shortened.
“Avoiding the big name trainers has been extremely difficult since the pandemic started,” he said.
“Nominations for races across Victoria have been going through the roof. I've compared the numbers to the panic buying of toilet paper earlier in the year.
“Sometimes it was difficult to find a race where you'd be confident of getting a win.
“But now owners have more opportunities across regional areas.”
Cornish-Gaskin have enjoyed a solid month to open the new season with Bolden Beau prevailing at Tatura on August 15.
And Cornish believes a good run of form is just around the corner.
“We've got a good number of horses in work at the moment, when in recent years we've probably been a little light on,” he said.
“Some of our three-year-olds have shown strong form in the jumpouts, so they shouldn't be too far away from hitting the track.
“We're excited by what could be ahead.”
Under the current legislation, any trainer living in Victoria must quarantine for 14 days if they are to enter NSW.
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