LOCAL LIFE
Trevor Niass
a hat . “ I didn ’ t have much luck with that ,” Trevor laughed .
“ The Kiwis drivers , by sheer fortune obviously , always seemed to draw fancied horses !”
Despite that , Trevor managed to string together a number of minor placings to finish in fifth place in a hot field of drivers which included Queenslander , Chris Alford .
Alford has gone on to become one of harness racing ’ s all-time greats and last February chalked up his 8000 th winner !
“ I gave up training and driving trotters about ’ 91 – it took me a couple of years , but I worked out that it was a hard way to get a quid .
“ Doing all the stable chores before and after working horses on the track , chores again in the evenings interspersed with taking horses to afternoon and night meetings in town , at the provincials and in the bush ,” Trevor explained .
Not to mention playing rugby league for the then Riverstone Butchers , picking up premierships in the under 15s and then a trifecta of A Grade titles in 1988 , 1989 and 1990 – ending his playing career with a man of the match performance in the halves .
So , the young man , who was introduced to the harness game and love of horses by his father , Alan , turned his hand to a variety of jobs to earn a quid – chicken catcher , council worker , garbo and property maintenance .
“ Dad instilled in me a love of horses and he was a wonderful mentor ,” Trevor said .
Alan operated his own knackery businesses – young Trevor was a willing hand - and he and his son dabbled in working trotters .
“ We lived at Marsden Park and later moved to Creek Street at Rivo – as close as you could get to the Butchers ’ footy field and the Riverstone trotting track ,” Trevor said . Aah , paradise ! Trevor gained his harness driver ’ s licence at 16 and nearly drove home a winner at his first outing , getting nudged out on the line in a race at Nowra .
“ My first winner was behind a horse called Time To Breeze on February 26 , 1981 , and , boy-oh-boy , did we celebrate because we had something on it at 33 / 1 ,” Trevor said .
“ I co-trained with dad and was in the gig behind a horse called Mill Reef which gave me my first victory at headquarters – Harold Park - in August the following year .
“ We celebrated long and hard because Dad , my mum , Janice , and I owned the horse !”
Trevor says he has “ been blessed in having amazing mentors ” throughout his life .
“ Mum and dad of course instilled in me a great work ethic and respect for others , and later in life , two great horsemen in Graham Ware and his son ,
While working as a horse wrangler on the hit 2014 movie , The Water Diviner , Trevor Niass ( holding the bridle ) earned the respect and friendship of the movie ’ s star and director , Russell Crowe ( seated on the horse ).
Graham junior .
“ Both men are legends in suppling perfectly trained horses and a large variety of other animals for film , television , media and live events .
“ Graham Ware , bless him , gave me the leg-up into the business and Graham junior has followed in his footsteps – two remarkable men whom I admire greatly ,” Trevor said .
Trevor has always had women in his life and all have provided him with love – his mum , Janice , six sisters , his wife Sally and 21-year-old twin daughters , Jessica and Michelle .
“ My three girls have a passion for horses – the twins riding in dressage and over the jumps , in camp drafting competitions and well , just caring for them on the family ’ s 40-acre property at North Richmond .
As is my want , I asked Trevor how he and Sally “ got together ”. I would ya believe it , at a dance ! “ It was back in 1989 and a mate and I rocked up to the sadly departed Jupiter ’ s Nightclub in Richmond ,” Trevor said .
“ There were two good sorts nearby and my mate said they were looking at us , so he walked across and returned quick smart and told me the “ really good looking one ” liked the look of me . “ Good judge of looks , my Sally !” Sally and Trevor had a nine-year engagement before tying the knot on October 10 , 1998 .
Still don ’ t know whether Trevor , always quick on his feet , did dance the light fantastic with Sally that fateful night .
But they go together like Torvill and Dean , Fred and Ginger and Winx and Hugh Bowman .
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THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT theindependentmagazine . com . au ISSUE 166 // MARCH 2024 7