Coal Crusher's swansong in The Hunter at Newcastle

The seasoned sprinter Coal Crusher is poised for his final appearance on the racetrack in Saturday's rendition of The Hunter at Newcastle, a significant race he has previously conquered twice.

Coal Crusher emerged victorious in Newcastle's most lucrative race in 2023 and repeated the feat last year. He also secured a third-place finish behind Briasa in 2024.

Saturday's event will mark Coal Crusher's fifth consecutive year participating in The Hunter meeting, following his win in a Benchmark 88 race at the same venue in 2022.

Trainer Joe Pride has indicated that the nine-year-old gelding, Coal Crusher, celebrated for his gleaming chestnut coat, will almost certainly race for the last time this Saturday.

"This will probably be Coal Crusher's last run,'' Pride commented. "He's been a great old horse, he's as tough as nails, but he's done his job."

Coal Crusher, who has competed in 53 races, achieving 10 wins and accumulating over $2.8 million in prize money, is nominated for The Hunter alongside stablemates Accredited and Kerguelen.

Pride has maintained the same spring carnival preparation leading into The Hunter that has historically served Coal Crusher well in recent years. However, the trainer concedes that his veteran sprinter's recent form leading up to the race hasn't been as impressive as in prior seasons.

Coal Crusher enters The Hunter after finishing at the rear of the field in the Group 2 Sydney Stakes and subsequently coming 14th in the Group 2 Russell Balding Stakes.

"He seems good, he's fit and well, but his lead-up runs are not where they have been the last couple of years,'' Pride observed. "But he's an older horse now, he's been getting into awkward sports in his last few starts and he's a quirky horse. I've waited for The Hunter to put the blinkers back on and he always races well at Newcastle so I'm expecting a much better run on Saturday."

Pride confirmed that Accredited, who was the runner-up to Coal Crusher in last year's The Hunter, will be participating in the major race once more. However, the trainer has not yet decided if Kerguelen will compete against his stablemates or be saved for the Benchmark 94 race on the same day's program.

Accredited made a strong return, finishing a close third to Polyglot in the Choisir Handicap at Royal Randwick on Melbourne Cup Day. Kerguelen, in his second start of the campaign, finished seventh in the same race.

"I thought Accredited was really good first-up and he's trained on well,'' Pride stated. "It's going to be a very strong Hunter again so I would hope Accredited can draw well. Kerguelen is fitter now but I'm looking at whether we go for the benchmark 94 race with him."

Pride also provided an update on another of his stable's long-serving nine-year-olds, the notable Private Eye. This gelding achieved his 15th win from 57 starts, elevating his career earnings past $13.3 million after triumphing in the Group 2 Linlithgow Stakes at Flemington on Derby Day.

"I've decided to give Private Eye a 'holiday', he's gone for spell,'' Pride announced. "He's going really well and we will look at an autumn campaign for him."

Consider placing your bets on The Hunter using Australian betting sites for Coal Crusher's final race.