Veteran Bold Mac looks set for strong outing with Alysha Collett
Alysha Collett is poised to carry more than just familial pride into Saturday's Rosehill card when she renews her partnership with a favoured steed, Bold Mac.
With her brother Jason not participating at the meeting, any discussion about who secures the ride for their father, Warwick Farm trainer Richard Collett, is moot. Nevertheless, Alysha understands the necessity of delivering strong showings to retain the stable's premier mounts.
"We have particular horses that we ride (for Dad), and when we ride a bad race, the other gets a go," Collett explained. "It goes around. Back and forth. And obviously (brother-in-law) Andrew Calder is the backbone at the stable as well. He gets a lot of the rides because he does a lot of the main work. But as a team, we just all work really well together."
The Collett family's connection to horse racing is deeply ingrained. Alysha's inaugural victories were for her father during her apprenticeship in New Zealand, prior to her relocation to Australia some years ago.
Since establishing her credentials in Sydney, she has enhanced her standing, experiencing a significant 2025/26 season with 21 metropolitan wins, a leap from the 12 city victories recorded the year prior.
Her most notable achievements included Group 3 victories aboard Nellie Leylax in the Premier's Cup and With Your Blessing in the Bill Ritchie Handicap.
"I thought at the start of the season it would be nice if I could ride ten or so (city winners), so I've doubled that," Collett commented. "I really hope we can keep the consistency going forward. It's not easy to do, especially only getting here four or five years ago and starting from Queanbeyan, so it's really nice to be getting the opportunities that I am."
Collett is scheduled to ride in eight of the ten races at Rosehill, but her keenest anticipation is for Bold Mac in the Jockeys Celebration Day Handicap over 1500 metres.
She harbours lingering disappointment over her ride on the experienced gelding in the Muswellbrook Cup in March and is resolved to deliver a better performance.
"I have flashbacks of riding him in the Muswellbrook Cup where I gave him a terrible ride and he was very unlucky. That could have been his last win," she shared. "He's had a few problems, but they've got him feeling great and he's going super, so hopefully he can run well on Saturday. He's one of my favourite horses. He's stepping up in distance, and he finally gets a lovely barrier and a bit of firmer footing."
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