Matthew Hill recently called his fourth spring carnival; one like no other, with COVID-19 ensuring it was staged behind closed doors, but his crisp style ensured a colourful depiction to a world-wide audience.

Hill is living out his dream behind the binoculars and microphone with the voice of the G1 Melbourne Cup always sold on a career as a race caller.

The multi-talented broadcaster grew up close to famous Flemington and a racing upbringing sowed the early seeds that flourished to future commentating experience in a number of other offshore racing jurisdictions.

“I’ve always wanted to do this and I was brought up in the Western Suburbs of Melbourne and about 15 minutes from Flemington Racecourse,” Hill said.

“My childhood was spent going to Flemington or Moonee Valley with my grandfather, who used to love the races, or I’d go and watch, as they were then, the Footscray Bulldogs who are now the Western Bulldogs.

“I’d either go to watch them on a Saturday with my grandma or go with my grandad to the races. I just loved the races and listening to them on the radio.

“I’m 39 and probably the last of that age group that listened to the races on the radio and was spellbound by it. I always wanted to replicate the job of the race caller.”

To that end, Hill took his first steps as a teenager toward fulfilling his ambition.

“When I was about 15 I started practising at the races with my binoculars and a tape recorder and I’d go to the races on a Saturday and then harness racing most Saturday nights as well at Moonee Valley,” he said.

“I’d sit in a spare broadcast box and practice away and as I sit in my office at home now, I’ve got cassette tape after cassette tape in my drawers of me calling races to myself when I was young.

“I slowly picked up little bits of work here and there at non-TAB greyhound meetings or barrier trials and harness trials. By the time I got to Year 12 at school I was pretty much destined to be a race caller.

“Having said that, I was going to go to do Media Studies at University, but the year after my schooling finished I was calling at trials and picked up some part-time work at the radio station, which is RSN now, and I’d spend every Sunday at the races with Greg Miles.

“I’d set up his gear, make his cup of tea and on the Saturdays with Bryan Martin occasionally and call some greyhound races on a Friday night at Geelong and that was my first year of employment.”

Scholarship success

His years of practise then paid off and as a 19-year-old Hill received a major break.

“Sky Racing had a young race callers’ scholarship called the John Tapp Scholarship and I won that and moved up to Sydney and was there for 15 years before returning to my current role in Melbourne,” Hill said.

His style has been mainly influenced by three prominent racing commentators.

“I reckon we are like musical artists a little bit. We tend to listen a lot and taking in what the other guys have done.

“When you’re practising, you’re trying to get the races right and moulding your style around the guys you like with a bit of yourself in there as well.

“For me, I loved Greg Miles and his style and I loved Jim McGrath in England, the Australian ex-pat who worked for the BBC. I was also brought up listening to Dan Mielecki call the races on Channel 10 through the Melbourne Cup carnival.

“They were the three voices I really enjoyed listening to so there is probably a bit of them in all of my calls.”

Prep work vital

An abundance of homework and preparation ahead of a race day is also part and parcel of the occupation.

“I usually spend an hour or two doing the form. I print the colours out into sheets and rebuild my form guide in a way with those colours and all my notes,” Hill said. “I probably spend four or five hours on a meeting.

“I look at a few different things as well and look at the history of the race and what may have happened years before and look at all the trainers and jockeys if they’ve won the race before etc.

“I use that before and after race commentary. I spend a good half an-hour to an hour sifting through the colours and learning them. I always try to look at them the day before and sleep on it and then it’s blended into your brain a bit better.

“The most important time for a race caller is 10 minutes before a race. When the jockeys are mounting up you take in the sight and by the time they are out on the track I know them by heart.”

Hill also has a faithful companion by his side while completing his prep work.

“Oliver my dog always sits peacefully next to the desk by me when I’m doing the form. He’s an absolute joy,” he said.

It’s also vital to Hill to stay both mentally and physically in shape.

“I love exercise and go to the gym three times a week and walk a lot, it’s a fine line between preparation and just resting your brain,” he said. “A brain is a bit like a computer – the more you put into it the slower it can become.

“The day before a race day I try and be pretty quiet and not overwork myself. You need to be fresh for the day and eat well and get a decent night’s sleep.

“My grandad always said the hours you sleep before midnight are worth two, so if you get to bed about 10 you should be alright.”

Sold on carnival

Hill’s favourite time of the year is undoubtedly spring carnival time, despite added pressure.

“I love Cup week and live for it and when it’s over I feel a bit anti-climactic and start to look forward to the next one,” he said. “It is a hard week with 37 races and what people don’t realise is the race caller has so many other things happening.

“Twenty-five years ago there were that many callers doing the different mediums. You had a radio caller, TV caller and on-course caller etc. If you went back to the 1985 Cup I reckon there was probably eight different callers of that race.

“Now there is one so I have to look after radio commitments, Channel 10 and they cross to me a couple of times a day and Racing.com do that and then there’s presenting the morning racing program.

“There’s so much going on and the Monday before the Melbourne Cup I would probably knock over up to 20 radio interviews and that’s on a day when you’re wanting to be prepping as well.

“By the time Cup week is over I’m absolutely exhausted and I spend a day or two just sleeping, but I wouldn’t swap it for anything else.”

Eerie atmosphere

Hill said this year was another entirely different situation due to the restrictions of coronavirus.

“It was particularly difficult with no crowd. It was very hard to really rev yourself up – like a performer you need that vibe to get yourself geared up. Once the Cup was run I sadly felt the last two days were quite flat so it was a bit of a slog to the finish this year.

“I do love the variety though, you’ve got that class day the first day with the Group 1 races, Cup Day is massive for obvious reasons, I love the balance of Oaks Day with the sprint race, the country race and the greys race and then the last day is another top-notcher with a couple of Group 1s.”

Hill has been in the caller’s box around the world, but Cup week remains his number one.

“I’ve called a lot of races around the world and done seven Grand Nationals, the Dubai World Cup a couple of times and called in about 14 countries, but I still don’t think much tops Melbourne Cup week.”

He is also grateful for the opportunities that have opened up since he’s called Australia’s iconic race.

“I can’t tell you how many doors have opened up since I’ve called the Melbourne Cup, it’s remarkable really. It’s an honour calling the Cup to the world and it’s remarkable how many people have been in touch with me, the Cup touches everyone.

“Even though they claim the Grand National stops England, which it doesn’t, and America claims the Kentucky Derby as their great race, they still can’t believe the impact the Melbourne Cup has. It’s definitely my favourite race.”

That aside, Hill has also has a real love for the Grand National at Aintree in Liverpool.

“I have a bit of a fascination with the Grand National and got lucky in 2004. When I went over in 2002, I had a trip to the National and met all the race callers and absolutely loved it and two years later I was going to go again and shout myself a holiday,” he said.

“I e-mailed one of the commentators I had met, a guy by the name of Dave Smith who was a commentator for the BBC Radio and they have four different callers because the track is so large.

“He said it’s amazing you’ve got in touch because I can’t do it this year and they had an Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman and if an Aussie was able to e-mail them and tell them you’ll be there I’m sure you’ll get the gig and I did.

“I ended up doing six Grand Nationals to Beecher’s Brook, which had its own challenges because the first time you get to see the 40 runners in the flesh is when they’re coming at you jumping this almighty fence.

“You’re part of a four-man commentary and that’s different because you're not in control of your own destiny and you have to cross to somebody else.”

Two years ago, Hill was to have his finest Grand National moment.

“The Englishman, John Hunt, who I had called with ironically had to work at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, which clashed with the Grand National,” Hill said.

“They got in touch with me and asked me to come over and be the main caller, calling the end of it so I ended up calling Tiger Roll winning it. I’m only the second Australian behind Jim McGrath, who I idolise, to be part of the BBC team for the Grand National.

“The other thing I would love to do is to call the Cheltenham festival, that’s on the bucket list.”

Versatility highlighted

Hill has also showed his versatility and class by covering a number of international sporting events.

“I’ll be up to my fifth Olympics next year when Tokyo comes around and I’ll be working with Channel 7. I did Beijing, London and Rio and throw in Sochi Winter Olympics in the middle,” he said.

Hill’s first Olympic experience in Beijing was, however, almost his last.

“I got very ill and nearly died. I ended up getting air-vacced out of China because I contracted melioidosis, which is probably not that dissimilar to COVID-19 and it had a 90 per cent death rate so I’m lucky to be here,” he said.

“I’ve done the Paralympics and the Youth Olympics and I do the tennis every year for Tennis Australia at the Australian Open and I’ll be up to my 10th year doing that and I’ve called some AFL footy.

“The problem is I can’t fit it all in. I’d do everything if I could, but racing is my number one and always will be. Australia has a history of race broadcasters calling sports.

“Bruce McAvaney was a race caller for Channel 10 and he’s become Australia’s greatest sports commentator, Peter Donegan was a caller and then became a superstar sports commentator and guys like David Morrow for ABC and Ray Hadley.

“Even Greg Clark, who calls the Rugby Union, started as a race caller. Race broadcasting has become a stepping stone to sports broadcasting. If you can call 24 horses charging down the straight at Flemington everything else is pretty easy.”

Hill has been a race caller for two decades and is in his fourth year in his role with Racing Victoria.

“I hope to go as long as I can, but I don’t think I’ll be getting to 36 Melbourne Cups like Greg Miles, that’s phenomenal,” he said. “That would make me 72 if I was able to top Greg, but hopefully I’ll be retired by then and laying on a beach somewhere.”

Hill obviously has extensive work commitments, but he still manages to find time out for a few other outside pursuits.

“I do love the gym sessions and I have a great love of music and my idol away from sport is Bryan Ferry. I’ve seen him in concert 12 times and absolutely love the man and guys like Johnny Farnham,” he said.

“I used to play golf, but not as much as I used to and love a good, social lunch when I get the chance."

When Johnny McKeever arrived in Australia in January ahead of the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, he certainly wasn’t expecting to spend the entire year here.

But that is the way it has worked out for the English bloodstock agent with travel restrictions preventing him and his wife Susie from travelling home and thus the pair have spent a year-long working holiday Down Under.

McKeever said that spending extra time in Australia allowed him to do and experience things that he never would have in a normal year.

“We’ve been stuck in Australia so I’ve been trying to make the most of it and learn as much as I can while I’m here,” he told TDN AusNZ.

“It wasn’t so bad because we were able to make acquaintances with people that we probably didn’t ever get to meet for more than a few minutes like we would normally do at the sales, so we’ve basically just settled into a Sydney lifestyle.

“We obviously couldn’t travel that much, although I did get up to the mares sale on the Gold Coast, and I’ve been up and down from the Hunter Valley quite a lot and inspected mares and foals and got involved with the foal and broodmare sales.

“That was the sort of thing that I wouldn’t have normally done because I wouldn’t have been around. So it’s just turned into a learning trip, which has been great.”

New experiences

One new experience for McKeever this year was attending his first Southern Hemisphere breeze-up sale at the Inglis Ready2Race Sale in October, where he was able to be on the ground for the successful sale of a couple of pinhook purchases.

“We had a couple of successful pinhooks there and I knew when I was buying one of them that it was going to be pinhooked at that sale, which was the Deep Field colt, and the other one I didn’t realise until we bought him that he was going to a ready to run sale and that was the Pride Of Dubai,” he said.

“But that was interesting to see. Obviously we’ve had breeze-up sales for a bit longer in Europe but they’re taking off here but it was an interesting dynamic.

“It was slightly different in that we have more local buyers whereas yours tend to be centered around the Asian market.

“Annabel Neasham was telling me the other day that she bought one and three days later she had it galloping, so it’s a different experience than buying a yearling and breaking it in and pre-training it etc before it gets to the trainer.

“So I think they definitely have their place, I’m still definitely more of a yearling fan than buying a 2-year-old in training fan, but it’s a useful tool for the in industry.”

On the road

Now McKeever is beginning to travel around to Australian farms to complete early yearling inspections and started with a road trip to South Australia to visit Cornerstone and Mill Park.

“We’ve been great friends with Sam Hayes for a long time and we’ve done quite a lot of mutual work in getting mares and stallions and so forth, so we decided that when the borders were open that we’d go an do a bit of a trip from New South Wales to South Australia by car, just to learn a bit more about Australia,” McKeever said.

“We went to places like Broken Hill and things like that and then we ended up going to stay with Sam at Cornerstone, and then we had a day with the Watsons at Mill Park.

“They have a fantastic bunch of yearlings which we were privileged to see, and I think we were the first people to be shown them so that was really kind of the Watsons.”

Farm inspections are another thing McKeever wouldn’t normally be able to do if not for his longer than intended stay in Australia but he said it’s a great opportunity for him to take his time in looking at all the yearlings, rather than cramming them all in a couple of days out from the beginning of the Sale.

“I bought 30 yearlings in Australia last year in conjunction with a few different agents and some Asian-based clients and local clients as well,” he said. “So as I’m getting a little bit more involved in the market here, it’ll be really nice to do the job a bit more professionally so to speak, than landing from Europe on January 3 and then have to work really long and exhausting days just to try and get through all the horses.

“I’m the type of guy that likes to see everything, I don’t handpick pedigrees beforehand because in general, my budget is not that big. So I like to actually try and see every horse so that I can pick a few out that are obviously not going to be the top lots but I like them which is kind of how we got Finance Tycoon, who won the Maribyrnong Plate, and he only cost $150,000.

“So that’s my typical market at the Gold Coast so you have to look at all the horses, but it’s great having the extra time to go around and look at them but they do change a lot.

“You can see them six weeks to a month before the Sale, they’ll change a lot but it certainly helps me to eliminate some that I’m not that wild about.”

Experiencing Australian racing

The overall year of experiencing Australian racing from within the country is completely different compared to observing from overseas and despite being well into his tenure as a bloodstock agent, McKeever said he has learnt so much about the industry this year.

“From a learning perspective, even though I’ve been an agent for 32 years now, to go to a country and do a whole year’s cycle in it, it puts so many more things into place for you,” he said.

“For instance, the race program here. It really helps explain how each carnival comes after the other and how they all fit in the pattern of the racing, which you don’t get when you’re just reading results at home.

“Just to complete a whole year from a sales perspective, and not just yearling sales, and from a racing respective to see how the year ebbs and flows, that has all been made much more clear to me by living through it, even if it is in a COVID-19 year.”

While he has taken so many positives from the time in Australia, in contrast, McKeever has also missed the entire sales season in Europe.

With the help of bloodstock agents on the ground, he has been able to make some purchases but he said he has found it difficult to buy without being able to see the stock himself.

“I’ve got a good working relationship with a few different agents in Europe so I’ve been able to participate in guiding people via them into some purchases, but basically I have lost the sales season in Europe,” he said.

“When you’re not there on the ground, there’s not much you can do about that so I’ve had to put that down as a year of experience and missing out and now I kind of know what it feels like to be an Australian trying to buy at these sales.

“At the moment I’m working my way through the mares for a couple of mare clients that we’ve got and you get the feeling of what it’s like to be doing it blind from their perspective, whereas normally I would be the guy on the other end inspecting them there for my clients.

“With the young stock, it’s been impossible. I used to buy quite a lot of foals in Europe and I can’t do any of that because that’s 100 per cent you’ve got to be there and yearlings are pretty much the same, although you can go a little bit further then on videos.

“But with broodmares and horses in training, we have been participating. Unfortunately for horses in training, it was so strong that we weren’t able to get much bought.

“It’s been an amazing year with how well the market has held up. Here I can understand why it’s held up, but in Europe, it’s been quite staggering how well it has held up.”

McKeever now has his sights on completing the rest of the yearling inspections around the Hunter Valley while also following the upcoming breeding stock sales in Europe, starting with the Tattersalls December Mares Sale in Newmarket next week.

“From Sunday next week we’re doing four days in the Hunter Valley with 500-plus inspections around all the major farms there,” he said. “And then we’re going to go through the Southern Highlands. We’ll obviously be following the December sales in Newmarket with the broodmares and then the Goffs Sales as well.

“I never have a boring day, but I definitely have more time on my hands than I would ever have in England. I’ve got lots of friends in Sydney so I’m never short of mates to meet for a drink in the pub.”

Leahy was then making his way as a jumps jockey and arrived in New Zealand hoping to further his experience and see more of the world along the way.

He fell in love with the country and has remained ever since and off the back of a successful riding career is now well-established at Cambridge, principally trading young thoroughbreds.

That side of his operation was handsomely rewarded at last week’s New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale when his colt by Sacred Falls (NZ) sold through Sam Beatson’s Riversley Park draft for NZ$525,000 to Richardson Racing who was bidding on behalf of an undisclosed Hong Kong client.

Leahy had bought the colt for NZ$80,000 as a yearling when offered by Cambridge Stud and represented a life-changing result for the 48-year-old.

“It was unbelievable and it took a couple of days to sink in. Then you start to think how it is going to make life better,” he said.

With young children Harrier, six, and Frankie, four, the financial implications for the family are significant.

“A bit of extra cash will never go astray with the kids at Christmas time, they’ll get spoiled for sure. We’ve also needed a new ute for a while.

“Kelsey has a horse trailer for her three-day eventing and show-jumping and we need a car with a bit more power.

“We’ll go shopping for a new ute for Christmas and we’ll probably pay a bit of money off the mortgage and even to go back to sales next year with a bit of confidence to do it all over again.”

Leahy said top of his shopping list when sourcing yearlings was type and then pedigree.

“The x-rays also have to be pretty much 100 per cent for what we do. I don’t often give a horse a triple-A rating, but the Sacred Falls colt ticked every box.”

“I’ve pinhooked yearlings for a few years now and generally we like to bring them on to the Ready to Run Sale or the trials and flick them on that way,” he said.

“What we’re left with in between we end up racing them, but touch wood we don’t usually have many that fit into that criteria.”

Leahy has regularly pinhooked in partnership with Beatson and another friend and fellow trainer Ben Foote, but was flying solo with the Sacred Falls colt.

“There’s been a bit of rib-tickling with that and it’s just the way it worked out. Sam does all the breaking and I often take a half-share with him or with Ben or we go into third shares.

“There have been other horses that I wasn’t in on, it’s just one of those things.”

City upbringing

Leahy was brought up in the city of Cork in the south-west of Ireland and had no early hands on horse experience.

“My family were city folk and thought what the hell is he doing when I went off to apprentice school. I was always a bit sporty and slotted in pretty quickly,” he said.

“My dad used to love the horses and would have his each-way bets and I would pick out a few and watch the races with him. The interest was there from a very young age.

“I was in school and a career advisor came and there was an advertisement for apprentice jockeys over jumps so I gave it a go.

“I had a bit of success when I later went to England and rode a few winners and did alright for myself.”

Leahy was still in his late teenage years when he landed in New Zealand and was quickly won over.

“I came here in January 2000 after spending New Year’s Eve in London with my sister and on a plane a week later. It was going to be a little working holiday, just to get away and do something else before going home,” he said.

“I thought I would come over and have a look and basically never went back. I’d read about New Zealand and what a beautiful country it was.

“I knew there was jumps racing, but that wasn’t the main thing it was more to travel around. I had been to America and went back home to see the family and then New Zealand looked a good option.”

It looked even better after Leahy made the most of an early riding opportunity in a prestige event within months of his arrival.

Famed jumps trainer the late Ken Browne handed him the mount on Gold Story (NZ) (Cache Of Gold {USA}) in the Great Northern Hurdles and they duly saluted.

“I also won the Grand National Steeples on Cuchulainn and the National was the big one,” Leahy said.

Leahy also won the 2003 Wellington Steeplechase with the Bob Autridge-trained Cuchulainn (NZ) (Double Nearco {USA}) before they landed the Koral Steeples at Riccarton ahead of the National and the Great Northern Hurdles the following year.

Archer on target

He also won the Waikato, Manawatu and Koral Steeples on Silver Archer (NZ) (Random Chance {NZ}) for owner-trainer Craig Amrein and, while unsuccessful, rode the horse in both the Nakayama Pegasus Jump and Nakayama Grand Jump in 2003.

Leahy rode 41 winners in New Zealand over seven years before he retired in 2008 to successfully concentrate on building up his current business at Armourcroft Stables.

“We bought the place off my wife Kelsey’s parents and they had named it so we kept it. We’ve got a few 2 and 3-year-olds here coming through, we usually have 12 to 18 in work,” he said.

“We like to keep it to that number and give them that little bit more attention. I ride quite a lot of them myself and Charlie Studd, a jockey and a friend of ours, rides with me and he’s a great help.

“My wife does a lot of work too so it’s like a family operation. We can keep our finger on the pulse a bit more when the numbers are around about that.”