The Waikato Steeplechase was a different story.
Matthews and Afterallthistime settled in second-last for a large part of the 3900m journey, biding their time as Jakama Crystal, Nedwin and The Cossack showed the way out in front.
Afterallthistime began to warm into his work coming down the side of the track towards the home turn, striding past more than half of the field and setting his sights on the leaders.
Nedwin lost all momentum with a poor jump at the third-to-last fence, and two-time defending champion The Cossack parted company with Mathew Gillies at the last. Through all of that, the $14 outsider Afterallthistime kept advancing.
He took a clear lead coming into the straight, but his job wasn’t over yet. He saved his worst jump for last and then faced a late challenge from strong-finishing stablemate Call Me Jack in a Kevin Myers quinella. But Matthews got Afterallthistime to lift again, clinging on to win by a long head. Nedwin finished another 22-and-a-quarter lengths away in third.
“It’s definitely a day I won’t forget,” Matthews said. “I’d like to thank Kevin Myers for putting me on this horse. I’ve had a bit of an association with him in the past and I’ve won on him before. I really like him. He’s a lovely, big horse.
“He got through the ground so well. It’s quite a nice feeling looming up so easily behind horses like Nedwin and The Cossack. That’s not something I’ve experienced before – passing them and thinking, ‘Oh, I’ve still got a bit left here’.
“He got in front and was a bit balky at the last jump, but we got over it and got him going again. We lost a bit of momentum with that jump and I knew the stablemate was coming, but he kept trying. It was a big effort and it’s a credit to the horse.”
● Dictation has encountered more than his share of misfortune through the early part of his hurdling career but he and jockey Mathew Gillies turned that around and made their own luck in the Fairview Motors Waikato Hurdle (3200m) at Te Rapa on Saturday.
The winner of three of his seven starts over hurdles before Saturday’s $60,000 feature, the Paul Nelson and Corrina McDougal-trained Dictation threw away a likely Sydenham Hurdle (3100m) victory with a late blunder at Riccarton last August, followed by a luckless second at Woodville after being badly impeded by a fallen rival.
Gillies played his role to perfection on Saturday, sitting second behind Verry Flash through the early part of the race before striding forward to take the lead with a lap to go.
Dictation moved further ahead with a bold jump in the back straight and Gillies elected to press on. Dictation put four or five lengths on the field within the space of 100m, stealing a break on the field that they never relinquished.
Dictation was all alone in his second trip down the home straight and won by four-and-three-quarter lengths over Verry Flash.
Mont Ventoux finished another three lengths away in third.
“He jumped brilliantly,” Gillies said. “Paul and Corrina are a great training team, they get their horses so fit. Full credit to them. They and the horse made me look good today.
“He put in a really good jump down the back straight and got a bit further in front of Verry Flash, and I thought I might as well carry on and put a bit of pressure on. The horse did a great job.”
Dictation has now had 32 starts for six wins, seven placings and $143,670 in stakes. His eight runs over hurdles have produced four wins and three placings.
– LOVERACING.NZ News Desk
