Warrior worthy of glory

No high- fives allowed but ‘ COVID’ feature race is still a winner

THE 2021 Longford Cup was run and won in front of a smaller crowd than usual because of pandemic- enforced crowd restrictions, which explains why some were calling the annual New Year’s Day meeting the COVID Cup.

Attendance limits were set according to public health guidelines, with strategic placement of sites throughout the complex amplified to ensure safe numbers on each allotment. Scrutineers were on track to ensure social distancing with no handshaking or hugging. Missing were the high- fives to celebrate a successful bet after each winner crossed the line.

But crowd and behaviour restrictions aside, the 2021 Longford Cup was especially memorable for local trainer John Blacker and apprentice Kyle Maskiell, who teamed up with grey mare Glass Warrior to take out the feature race.

Blacker is no stranger to winning the race, having won the 2020 edition with Triple Strip, who went on to finish a luckless second to Newhart in the 2020 Devonport Cup.

While Triple Strip was more of a miler, capable of stretching out to 2000m events, Glass Warrior is a pure stayer and one that

Blacker believes could turn out to be the best he has trained. A small setback with Glass Warrior’s preparation at one stage threatened to curtail plans to tackle the state’s two major cups in 2021. But any fears that the mare might not make it to those Group 3 events were quashed when Maskiell guided her to an emphatic Longford Cup win. Having placed third in the 2020 Ladbrokes Hobart Cup and fourth in the Launceston Cup, Blacker was confident the daughter of Glass Harmonium from the Golden Snake mare Hissy Miss would improve this season, given the form she showed in last year’s major cups.

Bred by Mandy Gunn of Motree Thoroughbreds, Glass Warrior has matured physically and mentally, which is why Blacker is confident she has what it takes to deliver in the big races this season.

“Other than for a slight hiccup ( she) is doing all the right things to suggest she can improve on what she did in both major cups last season,” Blacker said. The astute trainer originally planned to send Glass Warrior around in tomorrow’s Devonport Cup.

But running her at Longford meant she would be better off running in Launceston two days later.

“The mare has pulled up a treat from the Longford Cup but I’m still undecided on whether to run her in the Brighton Cup ( 2100m) or the weight- for- age Tasmanian Stakes ( 1600m) in Launceston on Friday,” he said. Blacker says his three- year- old filly Needs a Tycoon looms as one of his best winning chance in Devonport on Wednesday.

The filly goes around in the Tasbred Bonus 3YO ( race 6) over 1650m, coming off a laststart second to Mystical Beauty in a maiden over 1400m in Launceston three weeks ago.