Kevvie’s win excellent but Debbie’s Oaks effort at 100-to-one has Ray even more excited

Kevin Kline’s come-from-the-clouds win at Auckland was hard to top but for co-trainer Ray Green the effort of Debbie Lincoln 750 km away in Chistchurch earned the performance of the night.

Not long after “big baby” Kevin Kline rocketed home from the rear to upset at Alexandra Park, 100-to-one outsider Debbie Lincoln nearly replicated the feat at Addington in the $232,000 NZ Pacing Oaks.

In a run which driver Peter Ferguson said fully justified Green’s decision to bring the Lather Up filly south, Debbie Lincoln came from near last on the home turn to run a close fifth, shadowing winner Arafura all the way down the stretch.

“It was a super run,” Ferguson said. “If anything I made a bit of ground on the winner.

“I’m not saying I would have beaten them, but if she’d got round the turn better, I would have been a lot closer.”

800 metres from home and Debbie Lincoln is last, tagging onto the back of eventual winner Arafura.Ferguson said with no horse inside her, Debbie Lincoln started laying in and lost vital momentum, allowing Arafura to put nearly two lengths on them.

“I’d never driven her before, so I don’t know if that’s normal or not, but I knew she was a good finisher and she certainly kicked.”

Ferguson rued the turnarond in fortune which saw Debbie Lincoln go from a perfect one-one trail early to being pushed back to the rear.

“I was laughing, thinking how good is this, you couldn’t pay for a trip like it. Then at the bell, it was like we might as well have not started.”

Ferguson elected not to pull out when the three-wide train came.

“I thought no, I’m getting a good trip. The problem is, if you’re the first one there (parked) before the train comes, you end up where you started. And at the end of the day I followed the winner.

“She just didn’t get the rub of the green. But that’s been the story of her three-year-old career, she’s copped bad draws and had hard runs and still gone well.”

Ferguson said it spoke volumes for Debbie Lincoln’s ability that she ventured south to where the fillies’ racing is at such a high level, and proved to be competitive.

Green said he never once flinched in his confidence in the filly, despite the non-believers, and to get within 2.9 lengths of the winner as the 13/13 second rank outsider in the field, augured well for her future.

“Ferg drove her well, she was just unlucky.”

Green will check the race programmes around Christmas to see if there are any suitable races for Debbie Lincoln but the $50,000 Magness Benrow Northern Mares’ Classic on New Year’s Eve is one possibility.

Kevin Kline bombs Invisible and Confederate in a slick 1:53.7 mile rate. PHOTO: Megan Liefting/Race Images.Green will also consider the next steps for Kevin Kline whom he said deserved a shot at better company now.

“Kev’s morphing into a very nice racehorse - getting better and better - and it’s only his first prep. He never lets you down. He doesn’t have brilliant speed but he keeps coming.”

Green said he wasn’t surprised to see the three-year-old Always B Miki gelding go so well for driver Maurice McKendry as the outsider in a strong field.

“I thought at the top of the straight he was going to win. Even though he had to come four wide, you could see the others were on their knees.”

Kevin Kline came so fast he swallowed up Invisible on the post to score by a head in a slick mile rate of 1:53.7 for the 1700 metres.

Co-owners Priscilla Edmunds and Lance Myocevic in the winners’ circle with co-trainer Nathan Delany and Lincoln Farms’ Ian Middleton. PHOTO: Megan Liefting/Race Images.It was his sixth win for Lincoln Farms’ owners John and Lynne Street and their big team of partners, Jason Deane, Brent Mulholland, Priscilla Edmunds, Lance Myocevich, Trevor Casey, the Red and Blue Syndicate, Ray Menzies, Dave and Daphne Jones and Margaret Rabbitt.

His stake earnings now stand at $92,002 plus a $6000 bonus) from 38 starts.

“Not bad for a $20,000 buy,” Green said.

One person who believes that could be just the beginning of Kevin Kline’s bankroll is Ferguson who has driven him to three of his wins.

“I think he’ll love top grade racing. He lacks a bit of gate speed but when they go hard, he loves it.

“And he’s still a big baby, he’s that dumb he’s got no idea. If he develops a bit of strength and switches on, he could be up to the cup horses.”