Ray Green, in the hospital day room with Lincoln Farms’ foreman Andrew Drake, admiring IRT’s gift of Copy That’s cup double.
Thanks IRT! Ray back on his hind legs and smiling thanks to cup sponsor’s gift
By Barry Lichter • 28 November 2022
The Ray Green smile was back today - thanks to some timely generosity from IRT managing director Richard Cole.
Green, in Middlemore Hospital recovering from major stomach surgery after being kicked, delighted in being given a large, framed montage of Copy That’s back-to-back wins in the IRT New Zealand Trotting Cup.
The display, by Race Images’ Ajay Berry, captured brilliantly the memory of some glory days which Green is holding on to as he begins his long road to recovery.
Green was up and about in the ward day room today, discussing the preparation of his team at Lincoln Farms with foreman Andrew Drake.
“I’m lucky the stable is in very good hands,” Green said. “Andrew is liaising really well with me and they know what to do. We’ll get through this.”
It’s a far cry from the initial prognosis when the surgeon who operated on Green for seven hours last Monday told his wife Debbie “he’s not out of the woods yet. Don’t get your hopes up too high.”
“It was a bit of a worry for two or three days. I definitely thought I was dead. It was horrendous.”
IRT’s Richard Cole and his uncle David join Merv and Meg Butterworth on the victory dais at Addington. PHOTO: Ajay Berry/Race ImagesApart from the pain, Green said he couldn’t eat or drink or sleep.
“It was tough. I didn’t sleep for three days, tossing and turning and vomiting. But the last three days I’ve been getting better and better. And last night I had a really good night’s sleep.”
Nibbling on a hard boiled egg and some beetroot, Green told how apart from half an avocado he’d eaten very little the previous week.
With postoperative ileus, where the body basically shuts down and rejects food or water, Green said he had to wait for his bowel and gut to start functioning again.
He’s back in semi-working order again now but will have to wear a stoma bag for the next few months - surgeons created a hole in his abdomen through which a tube now funnels away his body wastes.
Stoma bag named Rose
Green, who has nicknamed the bag “Rose”, after his treasured No. 1 hospital nurse, said he’d been kicked plenty of times in the past but nothing approaching the severity of what happened last week.
“I couldn’t believe how hard that filly kicked me or why it would want to. It was unreal. It just barrelled me and I went flying through the air. Luckily I had my helmet on.”
Green said after initially protesting he’d be fine with 30 minutes rest, he knew after five minutes he was in trouble and needed to go to hospital.
“You can get a bit macho sometimes in this business. You think you can be a tough guy, take the kicks and bounce back.
“When I woke up after the operation all the texts were coming in saying ‘you’re tough, you’ll bounce back’ but I don’t think they understood just how bad it was.”
Green still hopes to recover faster than his doctors anticipate - he’s expecting to be discharged in the next few days and hopes to visit the stables by Friday.
He’s hoping to get back to the races next week when Copy That will be entered for a mobile mile, the cup winner’s last chance to get fit for the $50,000 Thames Summer Cup (2200m) the following week.
Whether or not Copy That gets a start remains to be seen. Last week he and Hot And Treacherous were scrubbed out by Harness Racing New Zealand because they were deemed to be too good for their opposition.
The Summer Cup and the $50,000 Lincoln Farms Franklin Cup (2700m) on December 31, are both standing starts with a maximum back mark of 30 metres.
More news in Harness
The dream’s alive but Nate tells why he’ll wait for ‘Harry’ before racing Eric again
Ray gives reformed Rascal his ‘most likely to succeed’ report from the pole on Friday night
Ray doesn’t pull any punches about Sugar Ray but punters weigh in nonetheless
Partners and pedigree made Johnny Lincoln’s win special - but where was everyone?
Our runners this week: How our trainers rate them
Nathan’s comments
Thursday night at Cambridge
Race 1: Im Not The Maid
5.14pm
“She went pretty well last week considering they came a fast last half (56.3) and she sat parked from the 800. She’s back to the amateur grade, and should get a good run from the two draw, so hopefully we can get a bit of cash.”
Race 4: Dreams Of Eric
6.38pm
“He didn’t handle the right-handed bends at Auckland last week (galloping at the 300) so we’ll stick to Cambridge from now on. There’s a bit of gate speed in the race so Harry (Harrison Orange) should be able to sit in somewhere. I think he’s a good chance to run top three.”
Ray’s comments
Friday night at Auckland
Race 1: Leo Lincoln
5.59pm
“He’s racing very well. He would have run second last week (to American Me) had he not spooked at the winning post. These are tidy horses he’s racing against but he’s holding his own.”
Race 1: Kevin Kline
5.59pm
“He’ll go better back to a mobile start. He did well to finish so close last week after a slow start than having to do all the donkey work when parked for the last lap. Maurice really likes him because he just puts him into cruise control and he keeps going.”
Race 3: Lincoln Downs
6.58pm
“She’s not as good as the other filly but some lift their game when the money’s up so maybe she can pick up a cheque.”
Race 3: Lincoln’s Spice
6.58pm
“She looks a pretty decent chance of winning. She’s a real little tradesman, does nothing wrong, is easy to handle, is a nice drive, tries hard, is great gaited and has the potential to get stronger.”
Race 5: Tyson
7.51pm
“We found out he raced with a virus last time. The next morning snot was pouring out his nose and that’s why he didn’t finish it off as well as we expected. He only whacked away in the run home. With that gone, he should race better.”
Race 5: Johnny Lincoln
7.51pm
“I think he’ll be competitive and he’s the best of ours in the race. He won well last week and has trained on well. He’s promising. I couldn’t go as far as to say he’s a classic colt yet but we’ll find out soon enough.”
Race 5: Sugar Ray Lincoln
7.51pm
“He’s doing my head in. He had no excuse for breaking last week. Maurice (McKendry) didn’t blame the wet track. He said he was gliding along, travelling beautifully, when for no apparent reason he put in big steps. I’ll put a hood on him this time to see if it’s a nervous issue.”
Race 8: The Rascal
9.23pm
“All going well, he should win what is a poor maiden field. He’s elevated himself from the transfer list and is going well now. He doesn’t have huge gate speed, so he may not lead but he should get a good trip from one. On paper, he’s our best chance of the night.”
