History was made at Doomben on Wednesday as Angela Jones became the first woman to win the Brisbane Jockeys’ Premiership, holding off a late challenge from good friend Emily Lang. Jones secured the milestone despite only managing a pair of second placings at the season-ending metropolitan meeting, her tally of 64 wins proving enough for a two-win buffer over Lang, who also went winless on the day.
“Obviously it’s been a battle for the last couple of months, but really the last month it has gotten really close and it’s hard to get excited because the most emotion you feel is relief,” Jones said. “I’m pretty happy it’s over and really glad I’ve come out on top, but I think I’ll be able to appreciate it more tomorrow.”
Jones, a proud Queensland native, had finished fourth in last year’s premiership with 51 winners. She acknowledged that the mid-season departure of reigning champion James Orman to Hong Kong opened the door for her breakthrough success. “I never would have dreamed I’d be fighting out a premiership at this stage in my career and I definitely didn’t think I would be at the start of the year,” she admitted. “I didn’t really think I was a hope, I just wanted to improve on my last season, but then just how the year played out with Jimmy Orman going away, obviously, we were in with a chance then and it’s probably been in the making for the last couple of months. That’s been my goal and it’s really good to pull it all off.”
Jones was one of two women to win metropolitan premierships in 2024/25, with Rochelle Milnes claiming the Adelaide title. Milnes sealed her triumph with a four-win haul at Morphettville on Saturday, finishing the season on 48 winners—eight clear of Taylor Johnstone—and became the first apprentice to win the Adelaide title since Jamie Mott in 2012/13.
Elsewhere, familiar names continued to dominate. James McDonald landed a seventh consecutive New South Wales title, ending the season with 83 Sydney wins, nine ahead of Jason Collett, who signed off with a treble at Warwick Farm. In Melbourne, Blake Shinn reclaimed the premiership he first won two years ago, finishing on 74 wins ahead of Craig Williams (67). In Perth, William Pike skipped Wednesday’s Belmont meeting but had already wrapped up a record 15th Perth Jockeys’ Premiership with 106.5 wins, a total that also secured him the national metropolitan title.
Other titles went to Anthony Darmanin in Tasmania, Jarrod Todd in the Northern Territory, and in the ACT, honours were shared between Nick Heywood, Jean Van Overmeire and Rebecca Bronett Prag.
