Onesmoothoperator (Smoothie) has settled into his base at the Werribee International Quarantine Centre, having arrived in Australia late on Sunday evening. He has been accompanied this year by his new groom Jackson McEwen, as Matt Brown who normally looks after him is committed to representing GB in the amatuer riders Fegentri Championships, where he has already ridden 2 winners.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of our first trip to Australia, where Carte Diamond became our first runner in the Spring Racing Carnival, finishing 9th in the 2005 Caulfield Cup. Sadly, Carte Diamond was seriously injured in a freak accident just before the Melbourne Cup which ruled him out the race. In 2006, with Carte Diamond still out, his stable companion Bay Story made the journey over to join him. Bay Story didn’t make the Melbourne Cup field but ran some great races, especially his 2nd in the Gr 2 Perth Cup (WA) in 2007. Tragedy, struck again later that year, when Bay Story sustained a fatal injury at the Flemington track, which left us heartbroken.
In 2011, we bounced back with two horses, Moyenne Corniche and Saptapadi, for another attempt at the ‘Race That Stop’s A Nation’ and whilst we finished down the field with them both, it was just a fantastic experience and it gave us great pride that we could say we have competed in the most presigous of races.
Last year Onesmoothoperator gave us one of the highlights of Brian’s career, when he won the Geelong Cup under Craig Williams. It didn’t go to plan in the Melbourne Cup, but we are back again to give it another shot! If it all goes to plan, he will go back to defend his title at Geelong, and with a bit of luck on our side, get a start in this years big race. He has moved up the order of entry in the Melbourne Cup after today’s confirmation stage and is now 28 on the list, with 24 being the maximum field size.
