Adrian Collins has no shortage of friends to wish him a happy 43rd birthday.
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Even with the state in lock-down mode, hundreds of well-wishers take to his Facebook wall to post messages to the mate they know as 'Spider', 'Jacko', 'Squealer' or 'Addie'.
The Examiner's racing guru Greg Mansfield describes Collins as "one of the real characters of Tasmanian harness racing".
Collins puts it a little differently.
"That's me about to put that horse into the barriers," he says, scrolling past his profile picture.
"I'm pretty much horses, horses, work and football."
Collins grew up in New Norfolk, a town half an hour's drive from Hobart with a population of about 5000.
There, he did all the usual New Norfolk things - "sport, sport and more sport" - which included taking a keen interest in his Dad's gallopers and joining the town's production line of quality footballers.
He learned the art of trackwork riding and eventually made his way to trotters, but it was Aussie Rules that dominated much of his 20s.
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FLAGS AND FOOTY
Collins played a full season of senior football for New Norfolk in 1998, the final year of the old State League.
Then known as the Chickenfeed Super League, the competition was taken out by Mathew Armstrong's North Launceston, while Darren Winter led Burnie to a third-place finish.
"It was a really good competition - we had a lot of ex-AFL players coming over and playing straight from the AFL," Collins said.
"So with three nights a week training with that, coaching a couple of nights a week and playing Saturdays only left one day [free].
"My first statewide league senior game there were 10 guys in the side that I went the whole way through primary school, high school, under-age football and senior footy with.
"So I'm debuting against these half-AFL players on the same ground as guys who I played cricket on a Wednesday night up at the primary school with, people I literally grew up with.
"We took it for granted at the time, but I made a lot of good friends through football and now I'm making a lot of good friends through racing."
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While his playing career yielded Teal Cup squad selections and senior football, it is Collins' coaching feats that he looks back on most fondly.
An under-19 flag in 2002 and a reserves flag as playing coach in 2004 are "certainly the highlights" of a lengthy football career that has since extended into the NTFA.
Moving to Carrick eight years ago to pursue more opportunities in racing, Collins was lured into an Old Launcestonians guernsey by then-Blues coach and chief steward Wayne Kirby.
"Wayne got me back into football, albeit more socially now, but I see it as an opportunity to try and give a little bit back to the game - I lived it for a while and it was good to me," Collins said.
"Now I'm with Old Launcestonians at Invermay, it's a fantastic club and I've met a lot of good people there - I might have one more year left in me and we'll go around, otherwise I'll be the runner or something.
"I've met a lot of good people and it's a fantastic club and I can't speak highly enough of them.
"The football club sort of welcomed me into the North of the state and I wouldn't be looking to move South of the border again.
"Although we didn't have a lot of success, sometimes those years when you don't have success you build greater bonds with people.
"I've also become involved with a gym in Launceston - F45 with Field Reeves - and the people and friendships I've met through that gym is a credit to Launceston - there's some lovely people in Launceston, as there is in Tasmania."
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RACING
Collins was "never built to be a jockey", but found his way into the industry by driving trotters.
After securing his licence in Hobart, he followed a hometown link to Carrick and began making his mark on the Northern circuit.
"A fella named Rodney Plunkett went to school with my Mum in New Norfolk many years ago and he had a large team of about 30 in work here in Carrick, so I chose to move up and work for him," Collins said.
"One thing led to another and I was doing it full time for three or four years."
Now a freelance driver, Collins considers driving more of a hobby these days but remains as committed and passionate as ever.
He has famously enjoyed success on King Island and relishes every trip across Bass Strait.
"I won the last two King Island Cups in a row and I won six in a row on a horse called Raffaello," he said.
"They've only got two races for trotters every week and each two races I won in three weeks in a row.
"I've met a lot of good people on King Island, friends for life."
He's met plenty more on the state's main island, too.
Collins speaks glowingly about one of the state's most notable racing clans, Longford's Rattray family.
"I've spent a bit of time working for Barrie Rattray and Todd Rattray and they've become great friendships and the knowledge I've gained off Barrie, I'm indebted to him for that.
"He's helped me a lot with driving and decision-making in driving in races, I owe a lot to him for that, they're just a lovely family.
"They had a horse called Beautide that won Interdominions and things like that and I was there in them days so I was lucky in that aspect.
"Through the encouragement from him and the young fella down here whose horse that was, Mark Yole, it's sort of encouraging me now to try and find a balance and possibly become a hobby trainer as well, become a trainer-driver."
WHO'S YOUR FAVOURITE?
There's been more than one horse to catch Collins' eye, but at the moment it's Gavin Kelly's seven-year-old pacer Blackbird Power.
"I won on him in Launceston [late last month] and when he brings his A-game, he's a class horse and a top-line horse.
"The better horses they just find a way to win. The other night I was probably 20 lengths off the leader when I looked up at the top of the straight and he ran him down.
"They're just a lot more professional and they give you a better feel the good horses.
"And he's a bit quirky in nature, he can be a bit of a funny one.
"You can't really drive him much with the whip - some horses you hit them with a whip and they'll improve, they'll find, whereas he's the other way.
"You hit him too much and he'll go 'nah, that's it', so he's a bit quirky like that."
SETTLING IN
Nearly a decade into his relocation, Collins lives with girlfriend and ex-jockey Tina Wilkinson and works full-time as a road maintenance worker with Stornoway.
When he's not asphalting roads, he's working the barriers at racetracks, at the gym, or playing footy.
His Mum and family still live in New Norfolk - "you're that busy that you never see enough of them" - but a return South doesn't appear on the cards any time soon.
"I really love living in Carrick, it's a great little community.
"It's a close-knit community - not so much that everyone knows everyone's business - but that everyone's looking out for each other.
"Especially with times at the moment - I noticed on our community Facebook page that there's people who are cooking meals and freezing them for the elderly, so they're like that.
"I grew up where you used to leave the keys in the car and the back door unlocked, so to come across a community like this is a godsend to me."
The next few years are likely to throw up some interesting changes.
Collins will soon call time on a football career that has lasted more than two decades, but there could still be a twist in the tale.
"I've got a plan, I'm going to go hard until I'm 50 and then settle down, have one horse and a day job," he said.
"I'd like to get back into coaching football one day, I've had a little bit of expression of interest here and there, but I think it's going to be one of those things when the time's right.
"It's a big commitment thing - you can't go in half-hearted. Even though it's social footy the NTFA's a good competition.
"It's a balancing act between social and professional, which is the balance you've got to find, but if you're not committed you're not going to get results."
Whatever the next few years bring, Collins will surely have friends from all manner of circles there to cheer him on.