Council
16 September, 2026
The Wingecarribee Cup: who takes the mayoral crown?
The barriers are almost set at Moss Vale for the biggest race on Wingecarribee’s political calendar — the mid-term election of Mayor and Deputy Mayor. We review the form guide.
The barriers are almost set at Moss Vale for the biggest race on Wingecarribee’s political calendar — the mid-term election of Mayor and Deputy Mayor.
There are no bookmakers, no TAB market and, until nominations are called, no official field, bar one, who has jumped early.
But there is plenty of form.
Wingecarribee’s nine councillors will elect one of their own as Mayor, with the winner holding the mayoral whiteboard until the September 2028 council election.
So, with apologies to Racing NSW, here is The Southern Wire’s entirely unofficial form guide.
Erin Foley — $2.20 favourite
The Quiet Favourite
The sitting Deputy Mayor starts from the inside barrier despite not featuring in the leadup to the September 2024 local council election race.
Foley has spent two years immediately behind the leader and knows exactly what comes with the mayoral saddle. She has generally avoided unnecessary theatrics and, if the existing council majority holds together, appears to have the clearest route to five votes.
She is part of a syndicate of 19 people formed in September 2024.
But the favourite does have a blemish in the form book.
A country trial didn’t go to plan, with Foley tripping at the Repoly Stakes and failing to make the step up in class.
Whether punters regard that as an aberration or a warning will become clearer when the barriers open at Moss Vale.
Otherwise, Foley has spent the past two years running immediately behind the leader and already knows the track. She has largely avoided the spectacular collisions that have characterised some of her stablemates.
That could be the political equivalent of keeping the blinkers on until race day.
The big question is whether she actually wants the top job — and whether everyone currently travelling in the same stable stays there once nominations close. Rival trainers are moving on stablemates.
Form: Positioned perfectly on the numbers despite a stumble in her latest trial.
The Wire says: The numbers have it, clean the whiteboard.
Mayor: $2.20
David Kent — $3.50 and firming
The Unreliable Sprinter
No unnecessary galloping around the paddock. Can labor late in the straight.
Kent’s strength is predictability. He has generally run with the council majority and could appeal if the chamber wants continuity, stability and fewer surprises from the mayor’s chair.
Like Foley, Kent failed to impress in a recent country trial after getting tangled up in the Repoly Stakes.
But the market has still moved his way.
The form book also contains some unusual distractions.
A prawn on a curtain rod has previously caught his attention, while pigs ears have also been known to distract him from the main race, suggesting the stable might want the blinkers fitted before they head to the barriers.
Track watchers have also noted Kent can look decidedly bored during longer trials and has shown a tendency to buck mid-race.
That could make the Mayor’s Cup an interesting distance.
Kent appears better suited to shorter events — particularly if the riding time can be reduced each race — where he can get in, hold his lane and get back to the mounting yard without spending an unnecessarily long afternoon in the saddle.
He remains a loyal runner when it comes to the racing bureaucracy. Kent tends to trust the officials, follow the established running order and is unlikely to suddenly leave his lane once the field has settled.
That makes him dependable.
It also means punters waiting for him to swing six horses wide and make a daring run down the outside probably shouldn’t hold their breath.
Form: Easily distracted, better over shorter distances and may need the blinkers fitted. Beaten by Can We Put This over the last 24 starts.
The Wire says: Keep the race short, remove the pigs ears and prawns, point him at the rail and he may get home.
Mayor: $3.50 and firming
Therese Duffy — $7.00
The Consensus Runner
Duffy could be the horse everyone suddenly notices when the first-choice candidates cannot assemble five votes.
Generally measured in the chamber and capable of producing researched contributions without throwing elbows at every corner.
Duffy has not always been the loudest runner in the field, but she has been capable of memorable performances.
She has largely avoided becoming the central character in council’s bitterest contests.
In council politics, being the mortal enemy of few can be a remarkably useful qualification.
Form: Capable of attracting second-choice support.
The Wire says: The classic compromise candidate.
Mayor: $7.00
Heather Champion — $8.00
The Campaigner
Wearing a green saddlecloth, Champion has shown she can get out among the crowd and make herself heard on community issues. A true heir to the whiteboard on social media.
That public-facing style gives her a different sort of profile from some of the field and makes her a genuine alternative if councillors decide they want a change of jockey without changing stables.
There is one problem for punters trying to assess the form.
The AI reports from the data centre have apparently malfunctioned, taking much of Champion’s recent form with them.
Until the servers come back, track watchers are being asked to rely on memory, instinct and whatever survives the reboot.
What is known is that Champion has done some of her most visible running outside the chamber, fronting community campaigns and showing she is comfortable working the grandstand rather than simply counting numbers in the mounting yard.
Whether that translates into five votes inside the chamber is another matter.
Trainer does appear intent on Champion moving into metro races in March.
Form: Strong profile, but the digital form guide has gone missing.
The Wire says: Worth watching once the servers are back online.
Mayor: $8.00
Nicole Smith — $14.00 and drifting
The Feisty Mare
An early favourite who looked ready to shorten dramatically in the market — until she lost the jockey at an early trial.
Stewards may want another look at the social-media vision before closing the book on that run.
That has taken some shine off what had looked like an increasingly serious campaign and the market has noticed.
Smith is never frightened of a contest and can show bursts of spontaneous speed.
She has provided some of the more colourful moments of the term, including dismissing Sara Moylan’s proposed councillor road inspection as a “farce” and showing little inclination to retreat once challenged.
She has also been prepared to enter political scraps outside the chamber, most notably scrapping with broadcaster Graeme Day in a barrier trial. Day the victor, Smith spelled.
Plenty of speed.
Plenty of temperament.
Thirsty for success.
The difficulty is that winning the mayoralty requires five jockeys agreeing to ride together.
Form: Early favourite who lost the jockey at trial time; stewards still studying the tape. Artistic running style in full flight and a $500,000 per year magic millions purchase.
The Wire says: Has ability, plenty of temperament — but the market is heading the wrong way.
Mayor: $14.00 and drifting
James Farrell — $25.00
The Mystery Horse
Every Melbourne Cup has one.
Farrell generally keeps his powder dry and rarely produces the sort of running commentary that makes it easy for punters to assess his intentions.
That makes him difficult to price.
He is a man of few words around the council table, resorting to ‘no’ when pushed by his trainer.
Farrell rarely wastes energy before the home turn.
That means there is also less exposed political form than there is for some of his rivals.
He might never leave the mounting yard — or could suddenly emerge as the name capable of getting five councillors to nod.
Form: Limited exposed form. Prone to resting before the race is over.
The Wire says: Nobody really knows what is under the bonnet.
Mayor: $25.00
Rachel Russell — $101.00
The Fiscal Stayer
Give Russell a set of financial statements and she’ll happily run all day.
She has repeatedly pushed council on financial sustainability, governance and transparency.
Regularly does trackwork, the hard-working chestnut challenges rivals on the straight asking questions until the end of the race.
The problem isn’t endurance.
It’s numbers.
Not wanted by the stable, may thrive under new leadership.
Form: Strong over the financial distance but racing from a very wide barrier.
The Wire says: Needs the entire field to take the wrong turn. Steven Bradbury a shareholder.
Mayor: $101.00
Sara Moylan — $300.00
The Rebel Runner
Has spent much of the term running against the prevailing traffic.
Roads, finances, asset sales, development and meeting procedure have all provided opportunities for Moylan to challenge the direction of the field.
Moylan stands up in the saddle, though at only 15 hands often fails to be fully captured by Sky Racing Live.
Her repeated attempts to move dissent against rulings from the chair became an issue in their own right, highlighting just how regularly she has found herself running against the dominant numbers.
Has form in the pothole classic.
Hates the wet and not running in the Bowral South Cup later this year.
Plenty of recognition in parts of the grandstand.
Considerably less certainty inside the jockeys’ room.
Mayoral elections aren’t decided in the grandstand. They’re decided by nine councillors.
Form: Plenty of fight; impossible-looking barrier draw. Will be better for the run.
The Wire says: Needs the political equivalent of Phar Lap, Winx and Makybe Diva all turning up in the same horse.
Mayor: $300.00
Jesse Fitzpatrick — SCRATCHED
The Retiring Colt
The defending champion won’t be contesting the feature having busted a whiteboard.
The young colt burst from the barriers in 2024 and took the mayoral colours at his first attempt but has decided not to saddle up for another run at the top job.
His two years at the front have coincided with arguments over council finances, infrastructure, planning, development assessment times and increasingly sharp disputes over the way council meetings are run.
His chairmanship has itself become part of the political story, particularly around rulings from the chair and attempts by councillors to challenge those rulings.
He remains a councillor and his vote could prove considerably more important than his scratching.
The colt may have been scratched from the feature, but he hasn’t been sent to pasture yet and market speculation is that he may be sold to stud for a Kings Ransom unless first gelded by current owners.
Form: Led the field for two years.
The Wire says: Scratched from the feature — but still capable of deciding who wins it.
Mayor: SCRATCHED
The Deputy Mayor Stakes
This is where the market gets messy.
If Foley wins Mayor, the deputy position is suddenly wide open.
If she doesn’t, she would immediately become a leading contender to retain the deputy’s saddle.
The most important form guide, though, remains the numbers around the council table.
Five votes can deliver the trophy.
For much of the term there has been a recognisable voting block, with Fitzpatrick, Foley, Champion, Duffy, Farrell, Kent and Smith frequently travelling together, and Moylan and Russell often finding themselves being lapped.
But the retirement of the stable’s lead horse from the mayoralty may change the equation.
The question now is whether the seven stay together when more than one of them wants the saddle.
Because the real contest won’t necessarily be run in public.
This is the race that stops the Highlands.
Gates open at 3:30pm with live coverage on The Southern Wire.
The Southern Wire’s odds and racing references are an editorial form guide for entertainment and satire only. They are not actual betting markets or references to real racing inquiries. We do not encourage gambling in any way.
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