The Christopher David trained Jayzeal overtook local horse and equal favourite Decker to claim the Jerilderie Gold Cup’s coveted trophy race on Saturday.
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Jayzeal staged a come from behind win with Amy O’Driscoll on board to claim the Coleambally Community Bendigo Bank Ken Sweeney Memorial Jerilderie Cup.
Approaching the last turn of the 1400m race before the straight, Jayzeal looked to be losing speed as Don’t Tell the Sheriff pulled ahead.
The local crowd were in a frenzy, with the Ross Purcell trained Decker leading the pack by a good margin at that stage.
But with a push from O’Driscoll, six year-old Jayzeal surged forward to catch up to Don’t Tell the Sheriff.
As the front-runners rounded that final corner, Jayzeal found another burst of energy and surged forward again.
Driscoll rode Jayzeal first past the post in a time of 1:23.65, almost 2m ahead of Josh Richards aboard Decker.
Don’t Tell the Sheriff held on for a top three finish, ridden by Makisha Salter.
Jayzeal was an outside chance at the win, paying $9.
Decker and the Craig Weeding trained Smart Poppy (fourth place) were equal favourites, paying $2.60.
Another local hope in Haather, trained by Silleagh MeyerVale, came in last in the cup race.
The Community Bank Coleambally and Jerilderie Agency Gold Cup was named in memory of Jerilderie horse trainer Ken Sweeney, who passed earlier this year.
“The Sweeney family has a long history with the Jerilderie District Race Club, and it was an honour to be able to name the cup after him this year,” the Jerilderie Race Club said.
“It was a hotly contested race, with local hope Decker leading the way for a large portion of the race, but he couldn't quite hang.
“The cup was presented to the winning connections by Murray Haynes on behalf of the Sweeney Family and Bendigo Bank.
“This year we also had a special trainer trophy in memory of Ken, presented to Seymour-based trainer Chris Davis. He was the first trainer to be engraved on a perpetual trophy in Ken’s honour.”
While Jerilderie trainer Purcell did not win the cup race, he did have some success in one of the other five races.
He pulled a double in race one - the McNaughts Maiden Plate (1000m).
With Bradley Vale aboard, Qaraar passed the finish line first after starting in barrier three.
Stablemate Aroaha came in second, ridden by O’Driscoll, with Sonic Cry coming in third with Logan McNeil aboard.
Purcell also tried his luck in a few other races, with Mr Brown Fox coming in 11th in race two, Swing City sixth in race three, Lady Emeilia placing seventh in race four and Marantelli Miss 10th in race six.
MeyerVale’s other results from the weekend included a fourth placing in race three.
Other race results are as follows:
Race 2 - Elders Jerilderie Benchmark 58 Handicap (1000m): Commands Success, trained by Dwayne Reid and ridden by Holly Durnan, 1; Solvere, trained by Dan McCarthy and ridden by Ella McGuirk, 2; First Division, trained by Helen Burns and ridden by Bradley Vale, 3.
Race 3 - Lowes Petroleum Benchmark 45 Handicap (1200m): Bokeem, trained by Jody Thompson and ridden by Stephen Brown, 1; Fabulous Choice, trained by Dan McCarthy and ridden by Ella McGuirk, 2; Toojay, trained by Nathan Hobson and ridden by Makisha Salter, 3.
Race 4 - Pumps, Pipes & Power Maiden Handicap (1300m) - Bold Cherie, trained by Craig Weeding and ridden by Jake Duffy, 1; With Thatm trained by Saab Hasan and ridden by Cameron Quilty, 2; Joyas, trained by Kelvin Southey and ridden by Josh Richards, 3.
Race 6 - Jerilderie IGA Plus Liquor Benchmark 50 Handicap (1400m): White Foot, trained by Shane Bloomfield and ridden by Jake Duffy, 1; Cesar Bessan, trained by Brad Cole and ridden by Josh Richards, 2; Saint Loft, trained by Michael Travers and ridden by Nick Souquet, 3.