By Michael Guerin
One race drive and one phone call was all it took for Move It Lou to find a new home with Tony Herlihy.
But the champion horseman was placing the credit for the juvenile’s win at Alexandra Park on Friday with former trainers Logan Hollis and Shane Robertson.
Herlihy drove Move It Lou in his first start four weeks ago and liked what he felt as the son of Sweet Lou finished second.
He asked Hollis and Robertson, who also owned the gelding, whether he was for sale and is always the case with them the answer was “yes.”
Herlihy’s first call was to Canadian owner Mike Tanev, who was quick to add another horse to his Down Under team and judging by how he won on Friday night it was money well spent.
“Logan and Shane come up with a good juvenile or two every season, they have a great record finding young horses,” says Herlihy.
“They owned the horse so they got good money and Mike gets a really nice horse.”
Herlihy has known Tanev for years and previously sold him other horses but is training this one himself with an eye on an early tilt at a Sires’ Stakes heat.
“That is the aim, the heat up here on September 5,” says Herlhy, with that Alexandra Park meeting to host juvenile Sires’ Stakes heat for the girls.
Move It Lou started a big 30 minutes for Herlihy as he trained Regal Girl to win the $34,000 TAB Racing Club Metro Trot in the very next race.
The beautifully-bred mare went past $100,000 in career earnings as she sprinted clear of Crackerjack and Bravehearthighlander.
She is owned by Herlihy’s wife Suzanne along with their close friends and neighbours John and Trish Green, the Green’s son James and Trish’s sister Colleen Smith.
“She has always been a nice mare but just took some time to strengthen up,” explains Herlihy.
“She can now handle 2700m as we saw tonight and she is doing a really good job.”
The night’s other Metro Final, of the pacers, went to a late-surging Leo Lincoln after a lovely Peter Ferguson up the passing to beat a very brave You Little Beauty.
The winner broke 2:40 for the mobile 2200m, a big effort on a cold winter night, and is part owned by co-trainer Ray Green.
Also impressive was Matty A in the main trot who overcame a 45m handicap to trot 3:28.6, a mid-race move from driver Andre Poutama the winning of the race.
The big son of Dream Vacation looks stronger this prep for trainer Sheryl Wigg and with the open class ranks lacking great depth he wouldn’t look out of place in some of the bigger races.