Rookie Trainer Leads Home South Aussie Sweep in Darwin Cup

Eighteen-year-old trainer Michael Hickmott showed the old timers how it's done with General Market, a comprehensive winner of today's $155,700 Carlton Draught Darwin Cup (2000m) at Fannie Bay.

Hickmott, who grew up around horses during his childhood and early teenage years at Murray Bridge in South Australia, has only been training for a year and today's win was obviously the biggest of his short career to date.

The young horseman, who shares the training responsibility with one of his long time Murray Bridge friends, said the Cup was a long term plan which thankfully came off successfully.

"We knew once he got to the front he wouldn't stop," Hickmott commented. "Third up, we really programmed his prep - that was exactly what we wanted."

Hickmott was confident the son of Australia's leading season of 2006/07 Flying Spur could match it with the favoured runners headed by South Australian raiders Nozi and Brad Star, who rounded out the placings.

"We knew he'd win today," Hickmott added. "We had a pretty good go at the 15s too, so we're pretty stoked."

"My best mate Lucas Paech and I train them together - we're both 18 and we've pushed hard this year, it's out first training year."

Popular Melbourne senior rider Mark Pegus was engaged to partner General Market today after they teamed up in the Alice Springs Cup in May when they finished fourth.

"We flew Mark (Pegus) up," Hickmott commented. "He was the best jockey in the race, maybe apart from David Bates."

Hickmott's father John, the new stud manager at Lakewood Stud in South Australia, is a leading trainer at Murray Bridge. Another of John's sons Rob holds a prominent stable position with Lloyd Williams' racing stable in Melbourne.

John Hickmott, best known over recent seasons for training gallopers including Frenzel Rhomb, Taos Pleasure, Pay Keys and Silent Action, purchased General Market for $65,000 from the draft of Mornmoot Thoroughbreds at the 2004 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale.

"Robert Thompson from Mornmoot Stud, a great stud down there in Victoria, bred him. He's been a big influence on my training career as well," Hickmott continued.

"We saw the horse at Mornmoot as a weanling we liked him then and we ended up buying him through the Adelaide Magic Millions (Yearling Sale)."

General Market's record now reads out at five wins and seven minor placings from 29 starts with stakes earnings of $151,630.

Pegus heaped credit on the 18-year-old trainer who presented General Market in peak fitness for today's rich top end feature.

"I'm really happy to win the Cup. Michael's done a great job with him and he's a top young trainer and he'll go on from here," Pegus said.

"After I rode him at Alice Springs he (Hickmott) assured me he'd be right for the Darwin Cup, and he's done it."

Pegus said he was confident right through the race.

"After the horse jumped so well I was very confident and I got on Nozi's back. At the half mile I took off and I was happy from there."

In the run to the line General Market ($11) had a two length margin over last year's winner, the gallant Nozi ($4.60).

The favourite Brad Star ($3 fav), chasing a $100,000 bonus after winning the Darwin Guineas and NT Derby, was third, a further length back.

The result was a real success for South Australia with all three placegetters prepared by crow eaters - Michael Hickmott (now Darwin, formerly Murray Bridge), Paula Trenwith (Morphettville) and Vincent Bradley (Millicent).

General Market is one of seven winners from the unraced Marscay mare Market Maid.

Being by a Golden Slipper winner (Flying Spur) and from a half sister to another Slipper winner (Dark Eclipse) you could be excused for thinking General Market wouldn't win a feature race over 2000 metres.

As well as being the dam of General Market, Market Maid is also the dam of the winning Vain mare Peach.

A winner over 1000 metres, Peach is best known as the dam of the VRC Sires' Produce Stakes winner Preserve and Flemington juvenile stakes winner Rio Osa - both prepared by John Hawkes for the Ingham family's Woodlands Stud Syndicate.

PIC - Jenny Barnes.