In August 1951, blacksmith Thomas Hiscock, described as a 'respectable resident', started a rush on the town of Ballarat.
Hiscock discovered gold near the Buninyong cemetery. Soon nearby Ballarat was home to the Gold Rush. People came in droves to find their fortune - 170 years on and nothing much has changed.
On Saturday punters head to Ballarat, panning though formguides in search of gold, and there is plenty to sift through.
The Cup itself is deep in numbers and chances, and those chances are centred around four last-start winners: Thought Of That, Only Words, Zayydani and Foxy Frida.
From that quartet one appeals as a good each way bet - Only Words.
She missed an intended run in the Matriarch which was won by Zayydani (who she had been due to go off shorter than in the betting) but her form was represented by her stablemate Our Intrigue who ran second after being hammered by Only Words the run prior.
That was in a crawl around they Vallley just 30 minutes after Ballarat Cup favourite Thought Of That won another crawl around the Valley.
Thought Of That was faster that night, and back in the sort of form that he has always promised under his maestro Linda Meech, he probably does deserve favouritism on Saturday, but it's easy to see a bigger and better performance still to come from Only Words who has only run three times at 2000m or beyond, winning two and running gamely in a Queensland Oaks at her lone miss.
It's hardly outrageous to think her chance is as strong as any in the field and, given that, $7-$8 (maybe bigger in what should be a good betting contest) is an appealing bet.
We sift right through to the last for our best on the card. The Cup might revolve around last start winners but it's one coming off a zero last time that holds the key to the last in our opinion.
Marine One arrives in the 3&4yo Classic looking to post a better result than his well-beaten 11th in the Coolmore but with every chance of doing so.
Put simply, he chased a pace - and a horse - that he wasn't capable of chasing at Flemington. Home Affairs blew up Marine One and several other handy horses in that fast and high-quality Coolmore.
Students of pace will immediately see what Marine One was up against there and that his run can be considered at least as good, or better, that a few that finished ahead of him.
Back into much calmer seas he looks well worth backing around the $4 mark.
THE MELBOURNE MAIL
Bet Of The Day: Race 10 #7 Marine One @ $4.00
Each Way Play: Race 8 #13 Only Words @ $7.50
