14 Alfred Road: Now known as Moore Street, is the first road crossing in the steeplechase course. There was a road double there until 1999 when the reconstruction of the course proper necessitated the removal of the first fence of the double due to the camber of the course proper. The fence was replaced with one about half way between the old stand treble and Alfred Road. Al Garhood: The fence in Granter’s paddock carries the name of the only horse to have won two Grand Annuals (2010, 2011) and two Brierly Steeplechases (2008, 2009), which was inducted into the WRC Hall of Fame in 2024. Corrigan Café: Tom Corrigan, an Australian Racing and WRC Hall of Fame member, was born in County Meath, Ireland and grew up on a farm at Woodford, north of Warrnambool. The merry little Irishman with the distinctive handlebar moustache was as much respected for his unquestionable integrity as he was admired for his skill as a jockey. His many wins at this course include four Grand Annuals. Corrigan’s death following a fall at Caulfield in August 1894 provoked a huge outpouring of grief as Melbourne came to a halt to farewell a true idol of the turf. Brierly paddock: When the new steeplechase course was laid out in 1872 it took in paddocks which were part of ‘Brierly’, and Granter’s paddock. By the end of the 1880s at least 150 acres of ‘Brierly’ had fallen into the hands of a syndicate which was likely to seek to sell that land to the highest bidder, possibly for housing. Prior to auction the WRC purchased that part of ‘Brierly’ which the steeplechase course traversed. After protracted and at times very tense negotiations, in 1899 the Racing Club purchased James Granter’s 15-acre paddock for £800. These purchases secured the unique Warrnambool Steeplechase course for generations to come. Steve Pateman atop Al Garhood, who won the Grand Annual and Brierly Steeplechase twice in his career. Source: Licensed Photos Buxton Bar: The bold front-runner Buxton secured the 1963 Brierly-Grand Annual double in dashing style. Keith Bullock, a member of a famous Western District racing family, trained Buxton and raced the gelding in partnership with his wife Enid. WHAT’S IN A NAME? Across 167 years some names have become deeply synonymous with this racecourse, others are not quite so well known.
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