 | RACING HISTORY |
YEAR: 1990
FEATURE RACE COMMENT
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| The Cup Winner & Connections |
John Langdon recalled one of his first trips to Addington was on a Cup Cay he should have been at school. He 'bunked' the day in 1962 he saw Lordship win in the wet and stayed at the top of the straight in case he was spotted.
One of those who used to enjoy his company at those race meetings was Harry Webber, no relation of the owners who now race the wonderful young pacer, Neroship. And those old days of youthful escapades became fresh memories as Langdon brought Neroship home in the face of desperate late challenges at the end of Tuesday's DB Draught NZ Cup.
Langdon is no freshman when it comes to the big-time.
His past showcase of metropolitan victories include an Auckland Cup (Neroship), an Inter-Dominion Championship (Young Quinn), and Inter-Dominion Trotters' Championship (Castleton's Pride), a Rowe Cup (Landora's Pride) and a Dominion Handicap with the same mare. But he has trained only one previous winner on the track, and that was King Alba in 1984.
He thought it was to be another grim reminder of past hopes and failed chances when William Dee didn't do what he should have in the main trot, but when Letterkenny Lad pulled a big one out of the box to give him his second training success on the track. He was quite happy to fit No.13 on Neroship.
Langdon received a choice path through over the first half mile, setting him up for a nice run in touch with the pace. "I envisaged a run such as that happening," he said. "All those drawn in were good beginners and I could see myself getting through as long as my horse began well. I didn't really want the front, but when I got there I was entitled to be left alone. The problem I had was near the quarter when he picked up the steel. I thought I'd blown it near the end, because I really would have liked to have held him up a little longer."
But the tide was washing Langdon's way, and there was still comfort at the end, as Starship fell half a length shy at the end.
Langdon is 43. He was born in Christchurch went to Burnside High School, played football with the writer when it was popular to trail forever, and left school to work in the accounts office of the Ministry of Works. All along, he hoped for a job in a stable, and he pestered the late Ces Donald to find a place for him. He couldn't. "I went round just about every stable in Christchurch. Then I went back to Ces to see if he would take me on," he said. Donald did, and gave Langdon the opportunity he has taken so brilliantly.
With horses such as King Hal, Chief Command, Indecision, Chaman and Cairnbrae, Langdon soon got the feel for good horses. And then came the move that really set him apart from trainers and trainers who are a bit special.
He joined up with Charlie Hunter, whose influence on his career was priceless. "He helped me tremendously. When he went export, he gave me the horses to train. Everyone's got to have help at some stage," he said.
Young Quinn was his major success, notable because he was so young, but he rates the win by Neroship as something just as special. "The big thing is that we bought him out of the sale, watched him develop and then do the job," he said.
The earnings of Neroship are now just short of $800,000, the result of 56 starts, 17 wins and 20 seconds and thirds.
Credit: Mike Grainger writitng in HR Weekly