Bell on verge of deciding riding future

By Glenn Davis

BRISBANE, June 9 AAP - Apprentice Tim Bell plans to resolve a likely career move within days but first wants to land his initial Group One win aboard Border Rebel in the $1 million Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm on Saturday.

Bell has been living in Brisbane for the past month while riding during the winter carnival and is weighing up several offers to move from his Tamworth base.

It will be a tough decision for the 18-year-old who has been apprenticed to Border Rebel's trainer Sue Grills in Tamworth for the past three years.

"I couldn't have asked for a better boss than Sue," Bell said.

"She's a great trainer but I've got to move on. I'll probably make up my mind within a week where I'm going to.

"Sue is like a mother to me and I've been at her stables for the past four years, three of which have been as an apprentice.

"I'd love nothing better than to win my first Group One while I'm still with Sue and on my favourite horse, Border Rebel, which gave me my first city winner."

Bell has been approached many times in the past two years to move to Sydney but has been in no hurry.

Several offers remain on the table from a number of top Sydney trainers while interest has also been shown from Brisbane and Melbourne.

"I don't have a preference at this stage and everything is 50-50," Bell said.

"I've had offers from Sydney but you need to have momentum going all the time there.

"Brisbane is a little lower in grade than Sydney or Melbourne and I've had a reasonable carnival since I moved temporarily to Brisbane for the winter carnival.

"I've had five or six winners and have ridden heaps of placings in Group races.

"The only thing that would inspire me to go to Melbourne is that there's not many apprentices down there."

Ironically, Bell would join Melbourne apprentice Sebastian Murphy as the only apprentices to win Queensland's premier sprint since Greg Hall won the Stradbroke on Innisfree in 1978 if Border Rebel was successful.

Murphy won the 2008 Stradbroke Handicap on the Mike Moroney-trained Mr Baritone.

Grills believes Border Rebel is the forgotten runner in the Stradbroke and is delighted with his progress since finishing fourth to Beaded in the Group One Doomben 10,000 last month.

"I'm just praying for rain but he has been the forgotten runner," she said.

"I was very happy with his 10,000 run and he drops 5.5 kilos.

"He led in the 10,000 but there's no way that will happen in the Stradbroke. I hope he settles fourth or fifth.

"He's the best horse I've trained and he's been super to me. He can win the Stradbroke, especially if it rains, and the three placegetters that finished in front of him in the Doomben 10,000 are the ones to beat.

"I'd love to win a Stradbroke, especially with Tim, and I won't be standing in his way if he decided to move on," she said.