Finally on the verge of reaching milestone
IT'S been an extremely long countdown, but top reinsman Robbie Morris is 'finally' on the verge of reaching a personal milestone.
Almost a year ago Harness Racing New South Wales' media started the timer by publishing articles stating Morris was closing in on his 2000th win.
The only problem was Morris' tally was sitting in the 1870s at the time!
"Yeah, people started taking the piss out of me after those articles," Morris joked. "I've had comments like 'geez, it's taking you a while to get those 10 wins' or 'how long does it take to drive your 2000th winner?'
"I was surprised when I read it given I hadn't gotten to 1900 yet and it has been a long running joke on me, but it's not my fault they went the early crow."
Taking his tally to 1999 thanks to his win behind Sir Knight in Penrith last night, Morris has the opportunity to reach the mark and end the 'digs' when he heads to Newcastle tonight.
With five drives on the card, Morris' prospects include Major Reason, which is among the main chances in the $100,000 Hunter Regional Championship.
Successful in his heat a fortnight ago, Major Reason has drawn to gain the ideal trail behind fellow heat winner, Craftmans Charlie, from the inside of the back row.
The Roy Roots junior-trained gelding is on the third line of TAB Fixed Odds betting at $4.40.
Craftmans Charlie heads the market at $3, with Man From Braavos - which was also triumphant during the qualifying rounds - splitting the pair at $3.10 from barrier two.
"The Metal Flyer has a good shot even from the second row in the first race, but Major Reason is the most logical of my drives," Morris said. "It'll be nice to get a milestone win in another big race."
As for the pending milestone, Morris offered a different perspective to the lengthy countdown.
"Like I said, it has been a pretty long countdown, and I've been reminded of that quite a few times, but really, if you want to go right back, I started the countdown to 2000 in January 2008 when I got my first winner," Morris laughed.
