MINISTER for Gaming and Racing David Harris officially opened new facilities at Scone Race Club on Tuesday, 7 April, as part of a $36 million investment into racing in the Hunter.
He also visited upgrade works at Muswellbrook and Cessnock race clubs.
At Scone, the NSW Government’s Racing for the Regions program allocated $20 million to install a state-of-the-art Polytrack training track, new stables and enhanced supporting infrastructure.
Minister Harris joined Racing NSW Chair Dr Saranne Cook, Director George Souris and members of the Scone Race Club Board to inspect the completed Polytrack and the first of five new stables.
The eight metre-wide Polytrack is an all-weather, synthetic training surface that doesn’t require watering down or irrigation.
It also enables horses to be worked throughout the year, even during wet weather, and minimises the risk of injury by providing a consistent, secure surface.
Stage One of the stables project has seen 113 horses relocated to a modern, two-storey ‘hotel for horses’.
Once completed by the end of 2026, four single-storey stables will be added to accommodate 302 horses, bringing the total number housed at the centre to more than 520, making it NSW’s largest regional training facility.
Located in the heart of Australia’s horse capital, the racing and training facility was founded in 1944 as the Scone Jockey Club.
The current racecourse began operating in 1994 and is renowned as one of NSW’s premier country circuits.
It is also home to the prestigious Darley Scone Cup Carnival, Australia’s leading two-day country racing event.
The Hunter region is also home to two other Racing for the Regions projects.
– Muswellbrook: $4.2 million investment for a grandstand upgrade with improved viewing, expanded multi-purpose function centre, enhanced male and female jockeys’ facilities with an 80 percent increase in the size of the female jockey room, and improved steward facilities.
The renovated site is now operational, hosting its first event – the Country Championship Race Day – on 8 March 2026.
– Cessnock: $4 million invested for a grass track renovation and construction of new sand-based training track and $7.5 million for multiple stables and associated infrastructure to accommodate 160 horses.
The stables are under construction, with the tracks to follow shortly.
Once complete the upgrades will give Cessnock a premier dedicated pre-training facility offering significant cost efficiencies to trainers and free up racecourse stabling.
Minister for Gaming and Racing David Harris said, “Country racecourses and clubs play a crucial role in developing our champions of tomorrow, and these upgrades will ensure the Hunter and Upper Hunter regions are competitive, grow jobs and offer world class facilities for both participants and the community.
“These projects also enable the creation of modern, inclusive workplaces, with an 80 percent expansion of female facilities at Muswellbrook accommodating the increasing number of women in racing.
“The redevelopments are about more than just improving race days and training facilities, they’re also about creating versatile venues that can host a wide range of community events and securing the long-term future of racing in regional NSW.”
These projects are funded through the Racing for the Regions program, with additional support from Racing NSW, to ensure rural and regional racecourses and associated infrastructure are up to date.
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