Above: Part owner and former trainer of Master O’Reilly Judy Mawer after the race on the weekend. By Brad Kingsbury
GREG Eurell and the Cindy Alderson flew the flag for Cranbourne on Melbourne Racing Club’s feature race meeting of the season on Saturday.
They both saddled winners of support races on the day Nar Nar Goon jockey Vlad Duric put his name up in lights by booting home Master O’Reilly to win the $2.5 million BMW Caulfield Cup by more than two lengths.
The meeting, attended by more than 45,000 people, was opened by the win of Alderson’s filly Try This in the 2000-metre Fat Quaddies Cup while Eurell’s lightly raced gelding Fire in the Night, ridden by in-form jockey Michael Rodd, got up on the outside of favourite Molotov to outstay the race favourite and take the race in a close result.
The other big Cranbourne-trained hope on the card was Collin Davies’ stable star Stanzout, which finished fifth in the $200,000 Group 2 sprint event over 1100m.
“I’m not disappointed with the run,” Davies said.
“There wasn’t a suitable 1200m race for him so we brought him back 100m, which turned out not to be ideal. The other sprinters were a bit quick at the start but he was doing his best work at the end.
“He’ll go on to the Flemington carnival now.”
Of course Duric and Master O’Reilly were the stars of the day, and the galloper’s former Cranbourne trainer Judy Mawer, who is now a part-owner, was thrilled with the effort.
“It was a huge run and it’s a great thrill,” she said. “I’m very happy for Vlad and I knew from the start that Master O’Reilly was going to be a special horse.”
Mawer took a 10 per cent share in the gelding before handing it to Danny O’Brien after the Caulfield trainer spotted the galloper at a country meeting more than 12 months ago and offered to buy it.
Owner Bill Sutcliffe declined the offer but asked O’Brien to train the horse and take it as far as he could.
Duric had already developed a strong bond with the horse and that has continued with the West Gippsland hoop piloting the gelding in 15 of its 19 career starts, including seven of its eight wins.
The horse and jockey are now on a Melbourne Cup course and Duric’s manager, former apprentice jockey Phil Roost, said the success was a credit to the talented hoop’s dedication. “We went to apprentice school together and then went our own ways before he asked me to manage him eight months ago, and here we are,” Roost said.
“It was the right timing. The opportunities came and we worked hard together to make the most of them.
“You have to have a bit of luck in racing but the work he’s done has been great and the results prove it.”
Roost has been involved in 10 Group 1 winners, but said Saturday’s success was the biggest and best.
“Stephen Baster ran second in this race on Aqua D’Amore last year and now Vlad’s gone one better. I’m just speechless,” he said.
Duric paid tribute to his former master, Cranbourne trainer Allan Williams, after the race, and celebrated the win with family and friends at his Nar Nar Goon home on Saturday night.
