News
Hard work pays dividends New
Date: 17-Jul-2026
A Far North Queensland kid with no racing background, a dashed AFL dream, a bank job that led to mucking out stables, a new life in racing, and now a growing Ipswich stable.
Michael Morrison grew up in Malanda, south-west of Cairns. Both his parents were teachers at the high school; neither had anything to do with horse racing.
After trying to make it in south-east Queensland as an AFL footballer, he joined the Commonwealth Bank near Deagon, where he met racing folk.
Starting with cleaning up boxes for trainer Pat Duff, he then worked for Darren Bell before he was accepted into the exclusive Godolphin Flying Start program.
Michael ended up training himself, first on the Gold Coast, then at Beaudesert and now at Ipswich, across the road from the racetrack.
At his home track recently, Michael Morrison won with Petite Palace, giving Ipswich apprentice Olivia Kendal her first metropolitan success.
Read more about Michael Morrison and his horse racing journey in the Ipswich Tribune Today or by clinking here.
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Story - Peter Foley
Image - Trackside Photography