My Mate Kate gave trainer Neville Brown his biggest win since Tuiaki took out the Group 2 Peter Mosman Classic in 2010 when she led from the first turn to land the Group 3 Ladbrokes Nowra Puppy Classic on Saturday night.
My Mate Kate capped a marvellous night for Brown as he also won with that bitch's litter sister Aim For Aria and litter brother War Weapon.
"It was a night to remember because I have only four race dogs in training and won with three of them,'' Brown said.
"My Mate Kate has recently returned from a seasonal spell and is still not quite back to her best, but after the Nowra win I plan to nominate her for the Ladies Bracelet heats at Wentworth Park on Saturday.
"She is a January, 2020 whelping so will be among the oldest greyhounds in the Bracelet.”
My Mate Kate was able to hold the lead from her box one draw while the favourite fastest heat winner from last week, Rio Bhodi, found trouble at the first turn.
Out of the back straight Flighty Fernando charged up to My Mate Kate, and taking the rails run on the home turn he looked set for victory. But My Mate Kate refused to be headed and held on for a half length win in 29.96s with Cumbria Days finishing third.
“She’s got a will to win this bitch and when things join her, she fights back. She’s done it a few times in her career and she kicked back and won in the final.
“She has a really great will to win.”
Brown admitted he has been trying to win the Nowra Puppy Classic - which was increased from $25,000 to the winner to $40,000 this year - “Pretty much since it started” and his persistence finally paid off with My Mate Kate.
“Yeah I have been trying to win it for a long time,” he said. “I think back in 2010 I was favourite with Tuiaki to win it but he ran fourth to Tasman Boy in the final.
“I have a lot of friends down at Nowra and like the people there, and the club does a great job.”
It has been a plan in the making for some time for Brown as he set littermates My Mate Kate, fellow finalist Sombrero, as well as Aim To Aria and War Weapon for the series.
On the way he put My Mate Kate and War Weapon in the TAB Million Dollar Chase series at Nowra, and both made the final, with War Weapon finishing third behind Special Blend and as such qualifying for next Friday’s semi-finals.
“My plan was to set them for the Puppy Classic and I went down there about a month ago and have been going there nearly every week since just to get them the experience and schooled at the track,” he explained.
“At one point there were no 500m races for them down there, so I put them in the Regional Heats of the Million Dollar Chase to give them some experience on the track. It was the only option I had, and it’s worked out well with War Weapon making the semi-finals.”
Brown raced Katie The Weapon, the dam of his three Nowra winners, but when she retired from racing he gave her to breeder Sue Boreland in exchange for puppies from the bitch's litter sired by Mepunga Blazer.
