Alysha Collett is set to carry more than just familial pride into Saturday’s Rosehill meeting when she partners with one of her favoured horses, Bold Mac.
With her brother Jason absent from the riding roster for the day, the decision of who would steer their father Richard Collett’s charge is settled. However, Alysha is aware that consistent strong performances are crucial to retaining the stable’s top rides.
“We have particular horses that we ride (for Dad), and when we ride a bad race, the other gets a go,” Collett stated. “It goes around. Back and forth. And obviously (brother-in-law) Andrew Calder is the backbone at the stable as well. He gets a lot of the rides because he does a lot of the main work. But as a team, we just all work really well together.”
Horse racing has always been a central part of the Collett family’s life. Alysha achieved her initial victories for her father during her apprenticeship in New Zealand before making the move to Australia several years ago.
Since establishing her presence in Sydney, she has continued to build her racing profile, notching a career-best 2025/26 season with 21 metropolitan winners, an improvement on the 12 city victories she secured the previous year.
Her notable triumphs included Group 3 successes aboard Nellie Leylax in the Premier’s Cup and With Your Blessing in the Bill Ritchie Handicap.
“I thought at the start of the season it would be nice if I could ride ten or so (city winners), so I’ve doubled that,” Collett remarked. “I really hope we can keep the consistency going forward. It’s not easy to do, especially only getting here four or five years ago and starting from Queanbeyan, so it’s really nice to be getting the opportunities that I am.”
Collett has been booked for eight of the ten races at Rosehill, but it is Bold Mac in the Jockeys Celebration Day Handicap (1500m) that she anticipates most keenly.
She remains disappointed by her ride on the veteran gelding in the Muswellbrook Cup back in March and is resolved to improve upon that performance.
“I have flashbacks of riding him in the Muswellbrook Cup where I gave him a terrible ride and he was very unlucky. That could have been his last win,” she recalled. “He’s had a few problems, but they’ve got him feeling great and he’s going super, so hopefully he can run well on Saturday. He’s one of my favourite horses. He’s stepping up in distance, and he finally gets a lovely barrier and a bit of firmer footing.”
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