Hugh Morrison

A fascinating article in the Telgraph wot I read thoroughly this morning. I believe Hughie and it could be, as was said, someone stirring up the drugs issue, or an angry ex employee. Could possibly be a current member of staff. It is ridiculous that trainers stables are not kept secure.

It's his responsibility though Slicer...

shirley Jeremy Kyle could sort this one out

whats the story

think there's a load of doping in racing that's swept under the carpet

no idea if Hughie Morrison is guilty or not, he comes across on the TV as a good egg so based on that you'd say he's not guilty but who knows

I'm very suspicious of some of the top trainers. There's a well known American trainer who sends these horses to Royal Ascot every year who look like muscle builders. the media fawn over him and until that changes there will continue to be rules broken in racing.

Sometimes people do things to keep up with the game(Sharapova),just saying.

If there's a feeling everyone else is doing it,,, then it must get very tempting.

i believe him but all others came clean and this one was pulled out for a routine test and tested positive first time?

something doesnt add up

Bus- yes- of course he must carry the can. J. Kyle couldn't sort out a bag of liquorice allsorts!

For those wot don't make enough on hear to buy the Telegraph:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/racing/2017/05/17/top-trainer-hughie-morrison-offers-10000-clear-name-claims-foul/

I think his Posh Accent might just save his Skin.

Not exactly journalism at his finest from oily Marcus.

slicer I was alluding to a lie detector test

Let's face it none of us have a clue what the real truth is here.

You can't have a defence based merely on 'I know nothing, someone must have got to it'.

Which is why he has to go Striding...

The BHA have let numerous trainers off with the defence of we don't know how it got into the system. Mostly £1k fines. Might be different with a steroid.

This one is rather unusual.  This was a 4yo 50's rated filly of virtually no account; he'd be hardly trying to win with her, and losing was likely/easy.  There were no unusual betting patterns.

BHA seem to have reacted to the 14th January Wolverhampton post race positive test by quickly arranging a "dawn raid" on Morrison's yard on February 3rd, nearly THREE WEEKS later. Quick off the mark these BHA Chaps..  Anyway all horses were "clean" including said filly. It was then that Morrison was informed of the Jan 14th positive test, although he was not informed of the banned substance. He found this out himself, with the help of an American toxicologist.

Much more to come on this one, I think

Do you not think the 3 weeks later might have been deliberate? If a trainer was surprised by a random test he might have cleared the decks for an immediate visit. Leaving it 3 weeks... false sense of security?

Also presumably post race tests take a while to come through, so once you haven't visited immediately it's all a bit academic when you do go.

The horse finished last didn't it. Hardly an enhanced performance.

He did not know the outcome of the Wolverhampton test until the Feb dawn raid.  If they had an example of one of his horses testing positive, why not go in straight away to see if there were others.  We know that by the time of the Feb visit the filly was clean and so presumably were any others, as evidenced by the 100% clean result.

For what it is worth I am pretty certain he is innocent, whether he will be found so, is another matter entirely.

Yes but if he had doped her he would know she'd test positive.

and she (and others) would be more likely to test positive if the "dawn raid" had been earlier.  It does not take three weeks to identify a positive sample and then arrange a dawn raid.

I know that's why I said it might have been a deliberate move to let him think it hadn't failed a test. Anyway GL!

I take your point Fear, but I am fearful that they are not that sophisticated

Haha you could well be right.

Another thing for us to remember, I suppose, is this a spoon fed story from Morrison to Armatyge, so who knows if all the "facts" are correct?

Well, of course everything we have thus far emanates from Morrison himself, as the BHA are shtum on the subject, as is usual with theses cases.

maybe the horse injected herself.

Well i think  H.Morrison aka 2nd Baron Margadale will get away with  a light sentence due to "exceptional circumstances" (don't know what they are though)

Mick Sturbs - Google is a dangerous thing when you are looking for facts. Had you been drinking?

The whole issue stinks. And I don't think Morrison is guilty.
There's a hidden agenda here, and the BHA are coming across in a very bad light.

Effects of nandrolone phenylpropionate in the horse: (2) general effects in animals undergoing training.
Snow DH, Munro CD, Nimmo MA.
Abstract

The effect of 11 weekly injections of nandrolone phenylpropionate (400 mg) was investigated by a crossover trial (2 training periods) in 6 Thoroughbred geldings undergoing training. A decrease in body weight and flank measurement occurred only during the first training period and was not modified by the anabolic steroid. Urinary nitrogen excretion was lower in the anabolic treated animals only in the first training period. Neither training nor training plus nandrolone phenylpropionate administration caused any marked alteration in blood biochemistry or haematology. A significant decrease in plasma chloride and increase in haematocrit occurred independent of treatment in the latter, more extensive anaerobic training of both parts of the crossover. No change in urinary pH or specific gravity was found throughout the study. No evidence of improved racing performance due to nandrolone phenylpropionate administration was observed. Behavioural changes attributed to the drug could be detected for at least 6 weeks after the cessation of treatment.
Strange..

There's a hidden agenda here, and the BHA are coming across in a very bad light.

Enlighten us, whats the hidden agenda?

I don't particularly like HM as he can be very irascible however no way would he have knowingly doped one of his horses.

To steroid a horse with no potential that finished last in a tinpot race on an All-Weather track beggars belief. I hope the £10k reward will wangle a "friend" of the person/s responsible for this immature and vindictive act to come forward.

Goodnight.....

Says it all really.  Darkness attracts the dark.

Someone who judges another without making a mistake themselves. Typical of humanity.

The full article is paywalled, so I don't know how they came to determine that this steroid has no effect on "racing performance". Surely they didn't deliberately enter and run these doped-up horses in races?

Racingqueen    18 May 17 22:55 
There's a hidden agenda here, and the BHA are coming across in a very bad light.

Enlighten us, whats the hidden agenda?


Someone is out to defame the trainer.

.......I Aint Buying That.

So what is your view Acey?     Simple "Trainer dopes horse and gets caught" is it?

Whoever administered a steroid to a very poor horse, it was least likely to have been the trainer but he has to carry the can whoever did it.

This case poses the same question that was never satisfactorily answered in the Chemical Nicky case - why was a 14/1 no hoper that finished last selected for a dope test in the first place? The BHA will admit that 99% of samples are taken from winners and beaten favourites - a 'random' test picking out this filly is just too much of a coincidence to be credible.

And if the filly was sampled on the basis of 'information received', do the BHA know who provided the information?

The only previous case of a trainer caught giving Nandrolone was Howard Johnson, who admitted to getting his vet to inject three horses that in his words 'needed a boost'. He got a one year ban for that, which was added to the three year ban awarded at the same hearing for racng a horse that had been given a nerve deadening operation.

I had an outisder tested this season. Well beaten too. And some winners are NOT being tested.

If the BHA weren't acting on info the idea someone else doped the horse and she got randomly selected is a million to one imo.

In fact i'd suggest they are testing some no hopers so they can say "look no positives in x of tests"

Where do you get that 99% from anorak?

From conversation on the racecourse with a member of the BHA security staff.

Thanks. I thought they chose the winner or a random. Or both. (obvs beaten favs is a diff matter). I must have been very unlucky to have a 25/1 shot tested :/

Apologies if i got that wrong Fear It is juts that i remembered some interviewer on tv saying he was a Baron
He was probably making a joke about it and i misunderstood

His elder brother is Baron Margadale. Their father was the 2nd baron.

Their father (or possibly grandfather) had horses trained by Jeremy Tree who oldtimers will remember was a very good trainer.

Yes, famous for training Quest For Fame and Rainbow Quest, I think.

From the Fonthill stud's website....

Stud History

John Morrison (The First Lord Margadale) made his entry into racehorse ownership at the Newmarket sales in 1952 buying an unraced two year old Fellermelad and a yearling filly Caol Ila. The following year Fellermelad provided a win for Lord Margadale’s newly registered colours on their debut at Newbury in April. With twelve foals in fourteen years Caol Ila did well for Fonthill Stud with her son Whisky Poker achieving the last of seventeen wins as a ten year old.

Emancipation acquired in 1955 produced a superior daughter Spree which won the Nassau Stakes and was second in the 1000 Guineas. However it was her half-sister Set Free which was to earn all the accolades for Fonthill. She earned a unique place in the annals of the turf during the 1970’s as being the first mare to be accredited with two winners of the Oaks and a winner of the St Leger. Set Free was mated with Blakeney resulting in Juliette Marny who won the 1975 Oaks and Irish Guiness Oaks. Three years later her own brother Julio Mariner won the St.Leger.

James Morrison (Hugh's father) took over his father’s bloodstock interests in 1972 (the year Juliette Marny was foaled) and saw his colours carry a second Oaks vistory by the half-sister Scintillate.

"..why was a 14/1 no hoper that finished last selected for a dope test in the first place?"

I've read many reports about this, which all talk of the horse being a no-hoper who wasn't fancied by anyone but I haven't seen anyone mention that the horse was backed from 22/1-12/1. 

http://www.skysports.com/racing/results/full-result/758718/wolverhampton/14-...

May 18, 2017 -- 3:03PM, lewisham ranger wrote:

think there's a load of doping in racing that's swept under the carpetno idea if Hughie Morrison is guilty or not, he comes across on the TV as a good egg so based on that you'd say he's not guilty but who knowsI'm very suspicious of some of the top trainers. There's a well known American trainer who sends these horses to Royal Ascot every year who look like muscle builders. the media fawn over him and until that changes there will continue to be rules broken in racing.

Tbf isn't everyone in racing 'a good egg', nobody deserves it more, a lovely fella, nobody works harder, nobody deserves it more. You see where I'm going with this...

I certainly wouldn't expect the BHA to disclose their reasoning for testing the horse and have to say HM didn't come over too well in that interview;his eyes were all over the place. Nevertheless I don't believe he deliberately allowed the drug to be administered.

do most gambles get selected for routine testing.

He is bang to rights and you all know it!

You almost seem pleased Busvaldo

Not really Blackbarn,just disappointed.

On this ground, his runner Marmelo has to go really close in the Yorkshire Cup today.  Will it be tested?

As a deterrent it is good news, isn't it?

Really love if his won the yorkshire cup!

member of his team caught urinating in a stable today @ York. What a dope

he comes across on the TV as a good egg so based on that you'd say he's not guilty

Someone is out to defame the trainer.

Some golden nuggets on this thread

once this happened he should have had his staff on the ball regarding everything. major error today

I am sure that Mick Fitz is correct that Hugh is an absolute gentleman but I am struggling to think of how their social circles have mixed. Sometimes it is almost as though Mick says the first thing that comes into his head without really knowing what he is talking about.

listening to fitzy and co explaining this away,one can only assume zaroni was a right wrong,un hated within the game,who everyone new was at it,when in reality if you,d have asked fitzy,s and the pundits opinion about zaroni the day before his story broke,they,d have trooted out the morrison line gentlemen,would has he to gain,suicide to give a horse drugs blah,blah

I'd accept there were valid reasons for Zarooni to steroid his inmates. The question then was and now still is...why did he suddenly withdraw his appeal when vehemently denying the charges against him initially? Also, did the BHA not super quick to cut and shut the case? The ramification and dominance of Sheikh Mo and co for racing and locality perhaps?

took one for the team as they say

and the BHA had "matthew Lohn" to rubberstamp the penalty

Addictedtowinning 19 May 17 21:11
 
I am sure that Mick Fitz is correct that Hugh is an absolute gentleman but I am struggling to think of how their social circles have mixed. Sometimes it is almost as though Mick says the first thing that comes into his head without really knowing what he is talking about.
--------------

'Nail on head'.

heard the loon chapmen say it wasnt up to morrison to prove himself innocent ,but for the bha to prove him guilty,theyve done that ,the positive samples prove him guilty,how it happened is morrisons problem not the bha,s,any other system just lets the trainers let someon e else in the yard take the blame for morrison s 10 grand for example or even in morrisons case or top trainers,50,100,150,200,grand not even the price of a half decent horse

heard the loon chapmen say it wasnt up to morrison to prove himself innocent ,but for the bha to prove him guilty,theyve done that ,the positive samples prove him guilty,how it happened is morrisons problem not the bha,s,any other system just lets the trainers let someon e else in the yard take the blame for morrison s 10 grand for example or even in morrisons case or top trainers,50,100,150,200,grand not even the price of a half decent horse

Athletes are responsible for what gets in their system. Has to be the same with horses. BHA always does their uptmost to get them off anyway. George Scott had a failed drugs test recently and the BHA praised him for his stable management and record keeping. The urinating in the stable thing shows Morrison doesn't 't understand the importance of it all, im0.

All just guesswork , ffs just calm down post your views once . Posh well spoken twetts usually get off with a small ban fine , this game is rotten but so well schooled nothing that turns up shocks the average punter. You just expect nothing to be done its outrageous but understandable but baffling that not one racing journalist dares to say anything that will rock the deep gravy boat. Horse racing is like no other sport imo amateur judges the whole thing is in need of a massive shake up but who dares shake it?