On Track - Spring 2020 Edition

11 9. RUBITON 1987 For me, this was a special one. As a racing and sportswriter for the Geelong Advertiser, there was many a morning spent with legendary trainer George Hanlon in his jeep watching his array of top-class stayers work up and down the hills of his Leopold property. On the Sunday before the Cox Plate, in the pre-mobile phone days, Hanlon tracked me down at my parent’s house in Melbourne to say, firstly Rubiton had been sent to his stable, and secondly, Bruce McAvaney and Channel 10 were going to film him at trackwork the next morning and to be there. I adjusted my schedule accordingly and saw the Cox Plate favourite work at Leopold and again later in the week. He had been sent there for a change of scenery after a disappointing run under his Adelaide trainer Pat Barns. It was a brutal Cox Plate with Vo Rogue setting a cracking speed. At the halfway mark of the race, Rubiton was third last and 20 lengths from the leader. In the straight Rubiton, ridden by Harry White, had to get past Our Poetic Prince and after a brief battle did so to take out victory. 10. SURROUND 1976 My first introduction to the Cox Plate was witnessing Surround, the only three-year-old filly to win and she was dominant winning by three lengths and setting a new track record. The Geoff Murphy trained grey filly was in an extraordinary vein of form. She won the Caulfield Guineas before the Cox Plate and went undefeated in seven wins that spring. No three-year-old filly since has matched her exploits. It was also a memorable day as there was a total eclipse of the sun at 4.39 pm, which lasted for three minutes and 27 seconds. To make it even more remarkable, the last race was won by a horse called Cosmic. What the 2020 Ladbrokes Cox Plate as in store is anyone’s guess. But one thing history tells us, we are set for another LEGENDARY edition to celebrate 100 runnings of ‘ The Race Where Legends Are Made ’. Michael Manley has covered racing as a journalist for over 30 years at the Herald Sun, The Age and Geelong Advertiser and now with Mediality. 99 RUNNINGS, ONLY ONE W.S. COX PLATE Geelong trained Rubiton wins the 1987 W.S. Cox Plate Surround created history in 1976