Hometown hero Harry Coffey kicked off racing at Swan Hill on Monday, taking the odds-on favourite Marine One to the line in a canter to win the $25,000 bet365 Top Tote Plus Plate over 975m.
Backed into $1.20, Coffey cruised across the field from his outside gate and pulled up just off pacemaker Freemium before letting rip in the straight and easing down to have a three length margin at the winning post.
Post-race Coffey said the horse “felt great, with a real turn of foot”.
He described Marine One as a really powerful horse to ride and said you knew you had a lot of power underneath you.
“He had a nice little blow so there’s room there for improvement; but he’s got a bit of quality about him and he’s a lovely colt and a pleasure to ride,” Coffey added.
“He’s been tested in better races so came here for a kill and did that, and I think he has been a bit prone to just want to rush things; get on with the job,” he said.
“He didn’t get racing early which was probably a blessing as it gave me time to get across outside the leader and by no means did he want to rush, he was just in a nice rhythm and I didn’t even ask him to improve into the race at the 400m, he just did that himself, so a nice competitive horse.”
But if everyone expected Coffey and Marine One to win; no-one spared a thought for Halobel in the second of the day, the $25,000 Jarrod Arentz Electrical Plate, also over 975m. In her six career starts, the four-year-old mare wasn’t just winless, she was placeless – which more than explained her odds bouncing around the 50/1 range.
In fact her best finish had been a fourth in January and her last two starts she was 10th of 12 both times.
She only got her start on Monday as an emergency courtesy of just one scratching in the race.
But in the straight she found a fifth leg for jockey Jake Noonan to finish a length clear and full of running and paid a whopping $32.30.
However, trainer Jamie Edwards reckoned he had given her every expectation Monday.
He said at her last start, also at Swan Hill over 975m two weeks ago, she had come home hard from stone cold last at the turn.
“So we picked this race out as a four-year-olds and upwards maiden and we thought she should have run third last start,” Edwards said.
The horse had been unruly going to the gate and Edwards agreed she “is a horrible horse to train, that’s just her”.
“But all credit goes to my apprentice Maddi Price, who rides her all the time, and this horse gives her absolute curry every time and is a big tough horse to ride.”
