All eyes on Copy That and his not so little half brother My Copy at Auckland on Thursday

Copy That is in great order to resume at Auckland on Thursday night but trainer Ray Green says he’s making no big predictions on where he will finish.

The New Zealand Cup champion faces seven rivals over the 2200 metre sprint trip and from the 30 metre back mark there will be plenty of punters prepared to bet against him in his first start for eight months.

“Old Town Road looks the one to beat from 10 metres and, if he lobbed in front easily, we’d have it all to do,” says Green.

“If we got the right trip and a suck into it he could win but I’m not expecting him to win.

“I know he’s in great order and will go a good race but obviously he’s not on top of his game yet so he may come up a little short.

“But class always prevails so you can’t leave him out of calculations. He stands over most of them.”

Adam Hamilton’s tweet on likely contenders for the Victoria Cup.Green says Thursday night’s race is just the start of a long campaign for Copy That and his main immediate mission remains the A$300,000 Victoria Cup on October 8. Anticipation is already high for that race with the list of possible rivals reading like a Who’s Who of harness racing.

“Over there there’s no question he’ll get the racing he needs to get ready for the New Zealand Cup and he should be far better than in his previous two cup campaigns when we’ve had to hang round up here hoping for a run.

“The little Victorian campaign should really fit him up and we’ll be back in plenty of time and primed for the cup.”

The last time Copy That raced over 2200 metres in a fresh state at Auckland he won. But he was on even marks with his rivals in that race, last October’s Spring Cup.

An indication of how vulnerable he could be from a handicap can be gained by the result of the Summer Cup of December, 2020 when Copy That started from 20 metres and, despite pacing 2:40.3, couldn’t catch front-running stablemate Tommy Lincoln.

Up-and-comer Old Town Road, winner of five of his eight starts, could be an even more formidable rival.

While he has not raced for nearly five months, he looked ready when winning Copy That’s trial heat at Pukekohe last Saturday. And he handled the standing start well, just like he did in his first try behind the tapes in March when second to Kango.

My Copy looking strong outside the leader 500 metres from home at Pukekohe last Saturday.$3000 bargain for Debbie

Earlier in the night Copy That’s half brother My Copy needs only a little luck from a bad draw to go close to winning too.

The Highview Tommy three-year-old, who cost Green’s wife Debbie just $3000 as a weanling, has raced only twice because of a number of setbacks, but looked promising when roaring home late for second last December.

“He’s been trialling really well and I think he’s a serious chance on Thursday,” says Ray Green.

“He’s drawn the inside of the second row but he’s in behind Amazing Me, and you’d think they’d try to hold up in front with her. So hopefully he’ll be in the first four or five early and get his chance.”

My Copy has had four hitouts at Pukekohe in the last month, getting progressively fitter, and looked primed last Saturday when succumbing only late to Group II placed filly Kahlua Flybye.

Driver Maurice McKendry’s tactics of easing out into the death a lap from home gave Green the confidence he could now be put into the race, rather than leaving his run until late.

Green said the interruptions to My Copy’s career might have proved a blessing in disguise.

Trainer Ray Green takes “big lump” My Copy out for his trial at Pukekohe last Saturday.“He’s a big lump of a horse and is certainly much stronger this time in.”

My Copy didn’t pass a pre-sale vet check last year when a miniscule bone chip was detected in a front ankle, which has since been removed.

But he was held up for much longer by a persistent seedy toe which farrier Shane Butcher eventually had to cut right out.

White line disease

“It’s called white line disease. A fungus eats into the foot and affects the inner layers of the hoof wall. He had half his foot cut away and we had to wait for it to grow down. He was locked in a box for the best part of two months.

“He’s fully recovered now and the way he’s trialling I’m expecting him to go well.

“It’s hard to get a line on him. He’s the type who doesn’t lift his game ’til something exciting’s going on so it’s hard to know where he fits. But if he gets a good trip, he’ll be right in the fray.”

Lincoln River (Monika Ranger) sweats up quite badly in his Pukekohe trial last Saturday.Green is also hoping stablemate Lincoln River can be prominent from the four alley in the same race but he says he can’t see the horse winning.

“I switched him from the two-year-old race because there are a few colts in there who would be too good for him.

He’s a nice little horse but I think it will take him a while to come to it.”

Riverboy Ben, who opens the batting in the first race, “will need a big form reversal to figure,” says Green.