Travelling to race is a fact of life for the Alex Maliff team from Mareeba, but there are not many longer trips in terms of time or distance than this week.
A week ago, Country Cups Challenge outsiders Devil Kick and Love On Sunday left home for Brisbane, which is about the same distance from Brisbane as Melbourne.
“It’s worth it for the big prizemoney and it’s a race we have targeted with both horses,” Maliff said.
“My wife Kelly [Buckingham] drove them to Mackay on the first day and then Wondi, where she stayed with her grandparents before going to Brisbane later in the week.”
“They are used to the truck being up here because we are always travelling. They put on the fly nets and just stand there, but it’s a long way down to Brisbane.”
It was around nine hours the first day, and eight the second, with the final run into Brisbane six hours a couple of days out from the $200,000 race.
Maliff knows what it’s like to win the Country Cups Challenge after Paniagua won it in 2020. The former winner was on hand to farewell the stable’s next challengers last weekend.
“He lives in the backyard of the house which is his because he paid for it,” Maliff said. “We paid about $600 for him and he won more than $300,000. He changed our lives.”
“These two probably aren’t in his class but to get them to Brisbane is an achievement.”
”There are ready to run well on the weekend.”
The series gives country trainers the chance to win their way to Brisbane through Cups from September.
Love On Sunday won the Atherton Cup, while Devil Kick got a late call up after running fourth in the Atherton Cup, then third in the Hinchbrook Cup at Ingham in November.
“We knew Love On Sunday had qualified by winning at Atherton, but we threw a nom in for Devil Kick, hoping, and he got in the field [which was released last week],” Maliff said.
“The owners were so excited to have a runner in Brisbane, they were booking flights and accommodation within 10 minutes.”
“It’s going to be a big weekend because Gamadale Nip is on the truck as well and will run at the Sunshine Coast on Friday. He’s the best chance of all of them.”
Maliff has about 18 in work at Mareeba, where the Mayfield-Smith brothers and John O’Shea once trained, and will take on horses from the south that will be back in their stables by Saturday night.
“I’ll head down later in the week and leave the team here to look after things for a couple of days,” Maliff said.
Love On Sunday is something of a legend of the north having won three times at the Mount Garnet once-a-year meeting and caused a surprise by winning the Atherton Cup.
“Everyone knows him at Garnet because he just wins there. It’s one of the biggest meetings up here,” Maliff said.
“We wanted to give him the chance at this race, so we targeted the races up here and he got the job done.”
“He has been set to run the mile and he might surprise a few people.”
“Devil Kick beat him in the Einasleigh Cup, so he is going well. It would be great to win it again.”
