Our Trainers

Tony Vasil

Tony Vasil is a former successful jockey, with 3,500 rides to his credit. Increasing weight however, led him to take up training and he has not looked back since.

Tony has built a fine reputation in the industry, not just for his consistently impressive strike rate over the years, but for his knowledge and approach to training. He has never been afraid to travel, if that is what is best for the horse, and has a very good eye when it comes to selection of young racing talent. He brings a tremendous strike rate of starters to black type returns and gets maximum results from limited numbers.

Based at Caulfield under the Aquanita banner, Tony achieved international success with the Caulfield Cup Winner ELVSTROEM, also winning the Duty Free in Dubai in 2005. Tony's other success stories include HARADASUN, SUPER ELEGANT, ZAZZMAN and UNDER THE BRIDGE to name only a few. Tony currently trains our 5YO Gelding, Skystreamer, for Clanbrooke.

Robert Smerdon

Robert was an extremely accomplished jockey on the flat and over the hurdles but he was always destined to turn his hand to training once weight forced him from the saddle. His success as a jockey, both within Australia and at international level provided Robert with an extensive grounding for his arduous choice of profession.

Being a member of the famous Smerdon training dynasty further prepared him for the challenges associated with training horses. Originally based at Ballarat, and arguably Victoria's most successful country trainer for many decades. Robert made the decision in 2003 to become predominantly a metropolitan based trainer, the switch has been very successful, with Robert always prominent in the trainers premiership table.

Although now based at Caulfield, Robert maintains a strong country flavour through a sizeable team still trained from our Ballarat stables. Robert has trained Group winners in all states of Australia, excluding Western Australia. He has a Sydney Cup, Adelaide Cup and Goodwood Handicap to sit among his Group 1 successes since joining Aquanita, and the rare distinction of training outstanding hurdler Zabenz to a Group 1 win in America. He is one of the country's most versatile trainers, having won Group 1 races with stayers and sprinters, not to mention his countless successes over the jumps. His ability to place horses where they have their best chance of winning and of getting the absolute maximum out of each horse's ability are legendary.
 

Pat Carey

Former Flemington trainer Pat Carey has set the world on fire since relocating to Mornington last year, averaging more than one winner a week, many on city tracks. Pat's sea change has certainly brought the best out of the Carey team and the success has just continued with both Clanbrooke and Pat's first Group 1 win with champion filly Arapaho Miss. Arapaho's stablemate, Royal Harmony finished 4th in the race in a sweetener for Carey and his team.

Pat began working with Melbourne Cup winning trainer John Meagher at the age of 12 and continued with him to the age of 28. Pat then decided to go out on his own, purchasing an excellent training complex in Epsom. Following the closure of Epsom, Pat moved to Huntly Lodge and trained from Flemington with great success, producing horses such as THONG CLASSIC, winner of the Moonee Valley Cup. With John Meagher's impending return from Singapore, Pat decided a shift to Mornington was his best option. The success of the Club and the redevelopment plans, along with the commitment to training, consolidated his decision to shift to Mornington.

Pat and wife Cheryl have purchased a complex close to the track that can cater for a team of 25 horses. With three children, Shaun, Mark and Mandy and Cheryl running the office side of the business, the Carey team is a real family affair.

In 2007, both Clanbrooke and Pat celebrated their first G1 victory when ARAPAHO MISS won the G1 Crown Oaks. Pat currently trains Influential Miss (recent Flemington winner on Cup Day 2010), as well as promising Mining Magnate and will soon take over the reins of our 2YO Elvstroem-Empower Colt.

Brian Jenkins

Brian Jenkins is well known as 1998 Melbourne Cup winning trainer of JEZABEEL. Boasting an imposing record when training in New Zealand, Brian trained Group Winners STARDANE, DR GREEN, TRIASSIC and Melbourne Cup winner, JEZABEEL. Brian was also responsible for the pre-training of Group winners PERLIN, JADE ESSENCE and WINDWINNER. Brian won the Wonganui Guineas twice with STARDANE and DR GREEN and although renowned as a trainer of stayers, it should be noted that JEZABEEL also won Black Type as a 2YO in the Champagne Stakes. JEZABEEL also remains the only horse to have won the Auckland Cup - Melbourne Cup double.
 

Relocating to Australia almost 5 years ago, Brian tasted early success from his base at Riverend Park with Green Birdie, Bird Dancer and Desert Master. Brian has, more recently, relocated to his own purpose-built training complex at Cranbourne where he trains an impressive band of runners for Clanbrooke including recent Bairnsdale Cup winner Allanthus, as well as Rescheduled, Devil’s Mountain and the unraced Secured and Star of Pisa.

Russell Cameron

Russell Cameron has been one of Australia's leading trainers for over 20 years now and after spending five years overseas he is back in Melbourne where he belongs.

Russell is son of the late Ted Cameron who was a leading trainer in South Australia for many years and to where Russell learned his craft.

Russell has trained ten Group One winners, amongst these the Newmarket, Stradbroke Hcp and Australia Stakes with top sprinter Toledo, an Adelaide Cup with Apache King and not forgetting Bomber Bill, the old war horse who took out the Australia Stakes under lights at Moonee Valley.

Russell is very much a hands on trainer with a great eye for a horse and patience is one of his main strengths.

One of Russell greatest sayings is that, 'the horse always comes first and is our number one priority."

With the high class facilites of Flemington Racecourse and the trianing ability of Russell Cameron, it certainly proves a great mix for success at the highest level.

Trent Pennuto

In 2008, Trent became stable foreman for Tony Vasil and Aquanita at Caulfield. Trent currently trains Ballarat `Horse of the Year’ and 3 time winner `Mayneda Strategy’ for Clanbrooke, as well as recently acquired and first start winner for Trent `Veiled.’ The Pennuto-Clanbrooke combination has a perfect record to date with over 10 years and a myriad of horses under our belt. It certainly is a terrific Partnership.

Simon Miller

Simon Miller learnt to walk hanging onto a horse and with racing in his blood he was always destined to follow a path to the race track. His family remain involved through ownership, syndication, and bookmaking.

In his early teens Simon started to think seriously of a career in racing which is when he joined the stable of Charlie Goggin where he worked weekends and school holidays. After successfully finishing his schooling Simon was drawn into the business world but the lure of the horses rang loud and he returned to the familiar sounds of racing stables. Charlie Goggin provided Simon with a solid back ground in horses but after three years with Charlie, Simon made the move to the stables of leading Cranbourne trainer Robbie Griffiths. Simon found his niche at the Griffiths stable and quickly rose through the ranks to be Assistant Trainer. In this time Simon was responsible for horses such as Dandy Kid, Big Pat and Solar Antiquity.

 With six extremely successful years under his belt Simon received a phone call from Sydney trainer John O’Shea. The offer to move north to take up the position of Assistant Trainer was hard to refuse and Simon was quickly off to take up the new role. As assistant to O’Shea, Simon had another tutor in which he could better learn his trade. Top liners Racing To Win, Fast’n’Famous and Safwa were in the stables at this time. However as the team prepared for the spring of 2007 equine influenza hit Sydney and racing ground to a halt.

It was at this time that an offer to train in Perth under the Aquanita name was made to Simon. He readily accepted, but before heading west, spent a further six months under the guidance of Aquanita Caulfield trainers Tony Vasil and Robert Smerdon.

With his degree in race horse training complete, Simon will oversee Aquanita’s foray into the west. Starting with the capacity to train 24 horses Simon is sure to have an instant impact.
 

Shane Fliedner

Shane Fliedner has been surrounded by, working with and attending to thoroughbreds his entire life. A jockey for eighteen years, Shane won 10 jockey premierships in Northern Victoria as well as riding Adelaide and Sydney winners throughout his riding career. Upon retirement from competitive riding, Shane elected to train thoroughbred racehorses.

In a period of only seven years since purchasing and developing his Bendigo complex, Shane has trained in excess of 200 Provincial winner and 26 Metropolitan winners including CLASSICONI, LITTLE DOZER, Jakodae (5 city wins) and LAURA'S CHARM (multiple city winner). With only 25 horses in work at any one time, the stable is proud of its achieved strike rate of:
20% Metropolitan winners to Starters
50% Metropolitan placings to Starters

Co-ordinating the training with a "Hands On" approach and genuine feel for his horses, Shane oversees all aspects of his horses wellbeing and training.  

Jason Cannon

Jason Cannon may not yet be a household name, but he has been involved in the racing industry for over 20 years. Commencing a jockey apprenticeship at the tender age of 14 under renowned master of apprentice jockeys Pat Duff, Jason’s weight prevented him from continuing down this path. Over the next 15 years or so Jason worked in four states with a number of trainers including John Blakey, Kelly Schweida, Lindsay Gough, Gary White and, more recently, Brian Jenkins.

Garnishing a bevy of knowledge along the way, Jason regularly breaks in horses for Clanbrooke and gives them barrier education. However, Jason’s specialises in the welfare of his charges, understanding that patience is essential when preparing horses for races and that understanding an individual horse in both body and mind is essential for that horse’s success.

With a small team of 10-15 horses in work at any time, Jason’s property boasts rolling hills, a 2100m sand track and 2200m grass track and provides a tranquil environment where young horses can realise their full potential.