PIPPI’S Pride went within a half length of winning the Walcha Cup and could make amends in Friday’s $35,000 Akubra Quirindi Cup (1600m).
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The Stephen Gleeson-trained gelding beat all bar Pro Consul in the tough 1440m Walcha Cup and was one of 22 nominations yesterday for Friday’s Cup where Walcha Cup winners and placegetters have excelled.
“It has been a good lead-in to our Cup,” Quirindi Jockey Club secretary Ted Wilkinson said yesterday.
One only has to look back at last year’s Cup, won by Latitat, who had also won the Walcha Cup at his previous start.
The Merv Corliss-trained bush cups champ Akwazoff also springs to mind, winning the 1996 Walcha, Quirindi and Armidale Cups in one brilliant country swoop.
Two years ago Brave Ali was second in the Walcha Cup to Pitt Street but then won the Quirindi Cup, placed in the Armidale Cup and then went on to win the Ipswich Cup after transferring from Craig Martin to Tony Gollan’s stable.
Pippi’s Pride has raced well for Gleeson, winning the Christmas Cup at Dubbo before heading to Sydney and Brisbane for no luck prior to his big run at Walcha.
Muswellbrook-based Gleeson rued what might have been after that near miss but conceded he was beaten by a better horse on the day who also carried 60kg to his gelding’s 57.5kg.
“We might head to Quirindi for the Cup if not maybe the paddock,” Gleeson said at the time.
If he does run as is likely, he will find a good track, Wilkinson added.
“We’ve had a lot of rain during January but had to put 30mm of irrigation on yesterday,” he said.
“We might have to put some more on Wednesday but we’ll see what the forecast is.”
Whatever it is, Pippi’s Pride and his cohorts will race on a good track, Wilkinson said, looking over the 155 nominations for the eight races.
“The two-year-old (8) is a bit disappointing,” he said.
“We might get a few more late noms there but all the other races have held up really well.
“The Cup should be a full field of 14 too and that will make the Calcutta a good night too on Thursday (at the Quirindi RSL Club).”
Wilkinson said the good noms were in spite of a lot of racing this last few weeks as well as as a big finish to the weekend, with Coonabarabran and Moree racing Saturday and then Scone holding the huge Country Championship Qualifier meeting on Sunday.
