There is a strong link between racing and football all over the world and this is epitomised in KZN by passionate Kloof-based racing owner Phil Georgiou.

Georgiou is anticipating the SA Champions Season keenly as he part-owns the promising Paul Lafferty-trained four-year-old gelding Dark Moon Rising. This rangy bay is a typically progressive son of Ideal World and after two impressive recent wins over 1800m on the Greyville turf he will try and qualify for the Vodacom Durban July via the Betting World 1900.

Georgiou started his football career playing for amateur club Robertsham before turning professional and playing first for Bluebells and later for Highlands Park and Orlando Pirates. At Highlands, under legendary coach Joe Frickleton, he played with the like of Martin Cohen, Des Backos and Larry de Freitas and at Pirates, in a team which included brilliant goalkeeper Patson Banda and the like of Elias ‘Shuffle’ Mokopane, he played in atmosphere charged derby’s against a celebrated Kaizer Chiefs team which included Teenage Dladla, Computer Lamola, Johnny Magwegwe Mokoena, Ten Ten Nzimande and Ace Ntsoelengoe.

Horseracing was already in his blood as the Marist Brothers school he went to in Linmeyer was packed with racing men of today, including trainers Mike Azzie and Joe Soma, bookmakers Ricky Sin and Keith Ho and owner Gary Westwater. Soma was a classmate of Georgiou’s and was in the same lift club and after school they used to go to the Azzie and Magua training yards. On weekends the group of schoolmates would ride to Turffontein and stand on their bicycle saddles and watch racing over the wall.

Georgiou’s first racehorse, in 1979, was trained by Stanley Ferriera. It was an expensive hobby even back then and he recalled, “At Pirates we used to get paid R50 per point and R50 per goal, so I used to earn R1200 per month for my nine-to-five job as a buyer and R2500 from football.”

His racing roots grew deeper and Jeff Lloyd was best man at his wedding and vice versa and he became close friends with another jockey Christie Blom.

Georgiou was transferred to Durban in 1986 and sent horses to the like of Vaughan Marshall, Dean Kannemeyer, Duncan McKenzie, Wendy Whitehead and Arthur Miller in PE.

However, he formed a close friendship with former Durban City footballer and now trainer Paul Lafferty and eventually decided to throw his full weight behind the Lafferty Summerveld yard.

“I wanted to race with my friends and we’ve been very successful. We’ve had horses like Harry’s Son, Goat, who ran in the July and Pearl Emblem, who won seven, including six in a row, and we’ve also had a lot of fun naming horses like Goat, Donkey, Chicken, Mule and Kokkerot Sop.”

Kokkerot Sop was the favourite drink of the group of owners, vodka and lemon twist.

“What I also like about our yard is the continual humour and we’re good losers, it’s good to win, but losing well shows character.”

Racing has been good to Georgiou as it has enabled him to fly overseas to watch Harry’s Son run and also to organise group racing tours through his travel company. He has organized a tour to the Dubai World Cup for the last 18 seasons and has had tours to The Arc, The Breeders Cup, Mauritius, Singapore and Hong Kong and his own travels have taken him to Ascot, York, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand.

“Whenever there is a South African link, we will find a reason to go.”

Georgiou rates the camaraderie among the racing fraternity as the sport’s main attraction and also loves the competition.

He and Lafferty, analysing the bond between racing and football, said, “Without sportsman racing would die. Sportsman love competition and the thrill of victory.”

Lafferty is a frequent traveller as his family live in the UK and he is the South African ambassador to the Australian Sales company Magic Millions.

He and Georgiou have built strong friendships on their travels and for example can get hold of trainers in England of the like of Mark Johnston, Sir Michael Stoute, Mick Channon and Jim Boyle at the drop of a hat. They befriend those people, who like them, enjoy a good laugh.

Georgiou also has his pet dislikes in racing.

“I don’t like sour losers and it disappoints me that there are different bodies in South African racing who are pulling in different directions. Racing is the greatest game on earth, it is the sport of kings, and we should all be doing what’s best for the game. I don’t like grandstand jockeys and grandstand administrators, who put their egos first. I think KZN racing is in a good place at the moment, they have a board who are thinking out of the box in order to go forward. I dislike those who criticise but are not even members and don’t bother to pitch up to meetings.”

Georgiou felt the Greyville racetrack was now in good condition and pointed to Summerveld, which was recently rated by a well known racing personality as the best training centre on earth. He also feels KZN has a good number of trainers and is surprised they don’t receive greater support from the biggest owners and breeders, considering the country’s most prestigious racing festival happens here, SA Champions Season, culminating in the country’s greatest race, the July.

The July is a race Georgiou believes will never be surpassed in SA. “The full house signs are always up and in the Durban View room for three grand you are served crayfish and lobster, the same thing in Dubai costs 16 grand!”

Lafferty’s popularity and excellence as a Master Of Ceremonies has been behind the success of such innovations as the EXPRO Charity race meeting in which ex-professional footballers, sportsmen and businessmen raise funds for the underprivileged. They provide 1600 gifts for underprivileged children per year. The footballers also attend just for their sheer love of racing.

By David Thiselton