JOURNEY TO GLORY
WILSON’S LONG ROAD
MARCUS Wilson was just 16 when he first met the renowned Messara family at Arrowfield Stud in NSW.
Back then Wilson was keen to learn as much as he could about thoroughbreds in preparation for a career as a trainer.
Arrowfield was a good place to start.
Fifteen years later, Wilson trained his first winner for the famous stud when Wind In The Willow scored at the Gold Coast on Saturday.
It might have been just a maiden but Wilson, 31, and Arrowfield have bigger races in their sights.
Wind In The Willow, a son of Arrowfield’s Kentucky Derby and Dubai World Cup winner Animal Kingdom, will be set for the Queensland Derby (2200m) at Doomben over the winter carnival.
“We’ll point him in that direction. If he qualifies then great, if he doesn’t there’s no harm done – he still has a very good future,” Wilson said after the three-year-old won the 1400m Maiden at Aquis Park.
If there’s one thing Wilson learnt during his year working at Arrowfield it is that patience is a key ingredient to a successful thoroughbred.
Wind In The Willow was having just his second start on Saturday despite having four or five preparations in the past year.
He had the first of three trials last year in July as Wilson patiently educated the horse with a view of him being a staying three-yearold.
“He’s just a big, young horse who needed time,” Wilson said.
“He wasn’t bred or built to make a two-year-old so we didn’t push him. He just had preps in and out, a few jumpouts and trials.
“When you look at the horse you think, ‘yeah, he has three-year-old mile-and-ahalf horse (2400m) written all over him’.”
Wilson said he was fortunate the horse was owned by John Messara and his son Paul, who trains many of the Arrowfield horses.
“They are very patient owners,” Wilson said.
“They gave me free rein to do the right thing by the horse and do what the horse needs, which we did, and we’ve got a result quite early in his racing prep.”
Wind In The Willow is the first horse Wilson has trained for the Messara family.
“I’ve known John and Paul for a very long time and have a good association with them, hence the reason the horse has found our joint,” he said.
Paul Messara often stables his horses at Wilson’s Bundall complex when he travels to Queensland for the Brisbane winter carnival or the Magic Millions meeting on the Gold Coast.
Wilson, who has been based on the Coast for six years after leaving his home town Inverell, has had two horses qualify for a Queensland Derby in the past.
He thinks Wind In The Willow deserves a chance at making the field this year.
“He’s a lovely horse and is still very green and raw,” he said.
“He’s still learning his trade but he’s starting to go the right way about it.
“They are only three-yearolds once so you have got to have a go.”