COFFEY is back in fine form as he won last Sunday’s bet365 Gold Ararat title on Tibetan, with the race worth $70,000.
The Swan Hill jockey is fresh from making his debut in the Melbourne Cup, and still had to work overtime because while he landed the big one.
In the Gold Ararat, fellow hoop and Tasmanian expatriate Jason Maskiell was on his way to landing a stunning triple, while Horsham’s Dean Yendall went back-to-back in races three and four to record another career double.
Coffey had to use all his skills to pull a Thoroughbred out of the hat when he was stuck behind a wall of horses, as the field started the charge into the home straight and headed for the line.
But the country cups specialist kept his cool, confident his chance would come – and he would grab his third Ararat cup.
“It was pretty smooth sailing because he jumped really well today, which can be something that he can sort of ‘not do’,” Coffey said post-race.
“I didn’t want to be as forward as we were; but he just landed there – but they went along at a nice gallop and I had him in a beautiful rhythm.
“When the early move comes, you sometimes in a way, feel as though you are missing the boat when you are stuck in behind them.
“But this horse has got a good enough turn of foot that if you are held up, you can still get out of trouble.”
Coffey said he and Tibetan got the head bob late, so it was a “pretty good training performance”.
“And he was right out of his grade today – he was coming off the back of a run at Bendigo, where he did rattle home, to his credit.”
In Ararat, “you’ve really got to beat good horses, and you have got to bring your best,” Coffey said.
“And that’s what he did”.
Coffey believes Tibetan, a five year old gelding, is going to become something of a country cups horse, “where you will always feel his presence in this sort of race”.
“It’s good to win country cups, this is the third time I have won this one, and the race has been pretty good to me, right back to when I was an apprentice,” Coffey said.
“I do a lot of work here, and I ride for a lot of stables that bring horses here to trial and gallop.
“And I know the committee pretty well because I have been coming here since I was a kid,” he said.
“Which makes it all pretty special to win these sorts of cups and as I have said before, Ararat has been pretty good to me, so I enjoy coming here.”
Coffey said he would like to win other kinds of races, but was proud of the work the Ararat Race Club had been doing.
“It’s pretty cool to walk in there and see all that history up there on show – and then see your photo on the wall too.”
