If Pantone Green can win tomorrow night's Group 2 Woy Woy Poultry Supplies Gold Cup at Gosford it will have special significance for trainers Kevin and Margaret Keys.
The Keys' now live at Dapto but Kevin was a long-time secretary-manager of the Gosford club and developed a special friendship with the proprietor of Woy Woy Poultry Supplies, Laurie Refalo.
"If we could possibly win the Gold Cup it would be unbelievable," Kevin said.
"Laurie is like family to Margaret and I and was a great supporter of the Gosford club for a long time when I was there and he is a friend for life.
"So to win the race that Laurie sponsors would be very special."
Pantone Green was impressive winning a heat of the Gosford Gold Cup last Tuesday night, leading throughout from box two, and he moves to box seven for this week's assignment.
"He's a very versatile dog and boxes don't seen to worry him," Kevin said.
"But he has to lead to win; if he doesn't lead he has no chance."
Pantone Green has drawn outside heat winner Billy Buzzard, who ran a very fast 4.31 first section, so should get a nice run across from the outside draw.
"The eight (Awesome Project) doesn't appear to have a lot of early pace and Billy Buzzard tends to go left at the start," Kevin said.
"Pantone Green runs a straight line to the first turn so I am just hoping he can get the fly and cross to the rails."
The Keys' took over the training of Pantone Green in the back half of 2013 after a phone call from Darbys Falls trainer Rex Cook.
"I've known Rex for a long time and and he just rang me up out of the blue and said 'I have a very quick dog here would you like to take him'," Kevin said.
"He told me originally that he didn't think he would run 500m so I told him to send him down and I'll try him for six weeks and he has just kept on improving.
"Virtually everywhere I have taken the dog he has led and he had only been to Gosford once before his heat win and he got beat running 29.95. When you run under 30 seconds at Gosford you very rarely get beat. Anyway he went quicker in his heat so hopefully he'll improve a bit further."
