Shiers breaks Darwin Cup duck with top ride on Write Your Name
Trainer Dick Leech and jockey Paul Shiers were the toast of Fannie Bay on Monday when they combined to win the $200,000 Darwin Cup (2050m) with Write Your Name.
For Leech, who claimed his first-ever Alice Springs trainers’ premiership last season, victory followed the win by Early Crow in the $135,000 Palmerston Sprint (1200m) on Saturday.
It was also his second win in the Cup, with Club Liquid saluting by 13 lengths in 2008.
Write Your Name won the $110,000 Alice Springs Cup (2000m) in April with Darwin apprentice Jade Hampson on board, and the victory at Fannie Bay on Monday makes him the first horse to win the two major NT Cups since Lothaway County in 1994.
With early leader He’s The Ultimate setting a ferocious pace, Leech’s eight-year-old gelding posted a new track record of 2:02.94 to lower the mark set by Playoffs in last year’s Cup by 0.63 seconds.
In a very open Cup, Write Your Name, who jumped from gate two, settled along the fence in fourth place out of the straight and wasn’t far away along the back until slipping to eighth when cramped for room at the 900m before heading down the side.
As the gaps appeared, Leech’s $7.50 chance accelerated at the 600m before getting off the fence approaching the final bend as Shiers set sail after He’s The Ultimate ($13), Wolfburn ($5.50) and Sanblas ($6).
Heading to the outside, the son of Written Tycoon swooped in the home straight to win by 3.5 lengths from Heather Lehmann’s Sanblas, a former NT Derby winner, and Gary Clarke’s Wolfburn, a former Darwin Guineas winner.
Sheila Arnold’s $5 favourite Lake’s Folly was fourth, while $6.50 hope Noir De Rue, who lumped 62kg and spotted the winner 6.5kg, was ninth.
Darwin Cup 2023 replay – Write Your Name
Sanblas (second) and Write Your Name (third) finished strongly in the Chief Minister’s Cup behind Noir De Rue on July 15.
“What do you reckon about that,” a jubilant Leech, who has stables in Darwin and Alice Springs, said.
“Couldn’t have had him any better.
“Alice has done him the world of good.
“We missed the Metric Mile, I said we’ll just keep him for this.
“Well done to Shiersy, a great ride.”
To win the Alice Springs Cup, Palmerston Sprint and Darwin Cup was not lost on Leech – he also had sympathy for the injured Hampson, who may have ridden Write Your Name.
“Very big – Jade, poor little bugger, was here barracking, she nearly broke my neck,” he said.
Shiers has monopolised the three other big races during the Darwin Cup Carnival, notching four wins in the Palmerston, seven in the NT Derby and nine in the Darwin Guineas.
But before producing a peach of a ride on Write Your Name, the 50-year-old had never won the Cup – finishing second four times and third two times.
“It’s been a long time coming, I reckon,” he said.
“I was starting to believe that it wouldn’t happen, but that wasn’t going to define me as a person.
“You’ve just got to keep giving yourself every opportunity and the way the dominoes fell this year I was lucky enough.
“Unfortunately, Jade missed out through no fault of her own – she suffered an injury and got hurt.
“I was the right man at the right spot, I was able to pick up the ride.
“Credit to Dick and the team, they’ve done a terrific job.
“Probably not a real conventional Dick Leech program with this horse leading into the Darwin Cup.
“He raced him pretty sparingly – he was spot on the money with him.
“He came here with a good team this year and he was really confident that the horses would run well.
“Through the middle part of the carnival he was scratching his head going ‘what am I doing wrong?’, but you’ve just got to stick with what you do best and stick with what you know and the wheels will turn and things will come your way, so that’s what happened.”
Shiers admitted he was pretty pleased with the ride despite a few nervy moments.
“It helps when you draw a good marble, you don’t have to be looking for a spot – I landed in a good spot,” he said.
“Bit worried at the 900m, Sanblas wasn’t taking me anywhere – I was half-carting between it and Anphina wondering where I was going to go.
“Then Sanblas picked up the bit and I was able to tack through inside a few tiring ones and then as Anphina and what not dropped off from my outside I was able to get him to the outside where he’s better served – that he can keep winding winding winding.
“I shit myself when I got to the front at the top of the straight, I thought, I’ve buggered this up and gone too early – but to the horse’s credit he was strong right to the line.”
Shiers also dispelled speculation that a Cup win would prompt retirement.
“Don’t listen to what you hear, I hang up the boots every Saturday just so they can dry,” he said.
“I’ll chase a 10th Guineas and maybe an eighth Derby next year, and see what pans out come Cup Day.”