The Hunter Cup has always drawn the best possible field over the years with a plethora of Australia’s and New Zealand’s best striving for success.
Looking back, one of the greatest and most memorable was the 2002 Moonee Valley Carlton Draught A.G. Hunter Cup standing start edition for a stake of – $400,000 sponsored by Carlton & United Breweries over 3050 metres which attracted an outstanding field including horses from New Zealand, New South Wales, Tasmania and Western Australia
The field (in barrier order) was:
Jonells Son Leon O’Bree Front
Pic Me Pockets Tony Herlihy
Seelster Sam Grant Innes
Wally Walton Matthew Gath
Prodigious Barrie Rattray
Bar Ron Boy Greg Bennett
Tailamade Lombo Chris Alford
Safe And Sound Lance Justice 10m
Jofess Darren Hancock
The Falcon Strike Gary Hall Jnr
Another Party Mark Reed
Yulestar Peter Jones 20m
Shakamaker John Justice
Atitagain Dennis Wilson
Gobermouch the emergency failed to gain a start.
It was a ragged start with the Falcon Strike and Jonells Son slowly away as was Tailamade Lombo who veered in sharply after the start checking Atitagain and others while Wally Walton began best to lead from Bar Ron Boy and Seelster Sam with Pic Me Pockets wasting no time in going forward to race exposed as the rest of the field made position.
With the action aplenty through the middle stages after The Falcon Strike had surged forward from mid-field to cross Another Party who had also taken off from mid-field approaching the bell with runs coming from all directions hitting the back straight, it was then that Gary Hall put the foot down aboard The Falcon Strike to race clear as Yulestar commenced a forward move four wide from the rear with Jonells Son coming out under him three wide going knowhere and Another Party still handy.
Pic Me Pockets then angled three wide from one/three to issue a challenge with Seelster Sam, Shakamaker and Safe And Sound all in the three wide trail.
Showing a withering burst of speed approaching the final bend, Seelster Sam dashed away from a host of horses including Pic Me Pockets and Shakamaker out wide challenging, while The Falcon Strike still kept giving on the inside and Safe And Sound emerging.
It was anybody’s race as the winning post loomed with Shakamaker getting his head in front when Safe And Sound out wide under vigorous driving from Lance Justice gained a last stride nose victory over Shakamaker with Seelster Sam game as they come a neck away third and Wally Walton after gaining an inside passage from three pegs a further neck back fourth. The Falcon Strike was a meritorious fifth 1.6 metres from the winner in a finish which had the huge crowd on their feet cheering all the way up the running.
It was a triumph for Toolern Vale’s John Justice who not only trained the winner Safe And Sound, but also drove the runner up Shakamaker with the pair fighting out one of the most thrilling finishes to the race seen in a long period of time.
A 7Y0 stallion by Safely Kept from the Windshield Wiper mare Larrakeyah Lady raced by Carol Watson, J. O’Neill, K. Unterlechner and Kasia Sas, Safe And Sound in quarters of 30.3, 30.3, 28.7 and 29.2 after a lead time of 113.2 seconds returned a 2-01.9 mile rate for the marathon journey.
That was another chapter to the Hunter Cup history – bring on the next one.
