David quipped that “it felt like a Group win” after LANDSBOROUGH LAD put a frustrating run of near-misses behind him with victory at Doomben.
Having been placed in all but one of his 10 starts prior to Wednesday’s Maiden Plate (1200m), LANDSBOROUGH LAD was in danger of becoming the stable’s version of Tom Melbourne but he banished his bridesmaid tag with an all-the-way win.
With blinkers on for the first time, the 5YO gelding shot straight to the front under Martin Harley and the pair soon established a commanding lead.
With his rivals rapidly closing the gap in the home straight, LANDSBOROUGH LAD had just enough petrol left in the tank to win by half-a-length and pick up a cheque for $22,000 which carried his earnings past $75,000.
“We’ve learned from our mistakes,” said his relieved trainer.
“It didn’t work trying to hold him up, so we decided to let him roll along in front today. We have also schooled him over the jumps since his last start and he had a couple of days in the pool leading up to the race, so he was definitely fresh and ready to go today.
“Martin rated him really well, he is a very good jockey with good hands, he’s spent a bit of time on the sidelines but now that he’s back I look forward to continuing the association with him.
“It’s obviously a relief to get the first win with this horse, and now that the monkey is off the back I’m sure he’ll win more races in the future.”
Many congratulations to the Harris Family, who bred and own LANDSBOROUGH LAD.
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