Things They Said Devoted fans all recognize the greatness of Northerly, but what do the experts think? Here is a list of what respected racing personalities have said about the great champ... FRED KERSLEY (Northerly's Trainer - after the 2003 Australian Cup) "I've never trained one half as good and I don't think I've seen one better." "He's a remarkable horse. I am in awe of his ability." "I may be biased but I don't think I've seen one better. I had doubts about him today but he answers every question." "It never gets any easier at the top. Thay are all after him but with each run, my admiration grows for him." GREG CHILDS (Six rides for six wins) "He was as true a champion as they come." He nominated Northerly's Caulfield Cup win as the highlight of his association. "With 58 kilos, the way the race was run, he was always open to be run down by a lighter-weighted horse. I let him stride at the 600m which is what Fred wanted. I knew he would be vulnerable to a lighter-weighted horse in the last 50m but he just kept going." It was Northerly's defeat of Sunline in the 2001 Feehan Stakes that signalled to Childs what a remarkable galloper he was. "Sunline was at peak fitness, we took off early and he looked a beaten horse. But he nailed us on the line. It was his determination. Often he looked to be struggling but he kept coming"." TREVOR McKEE (Sunline's trainer) "We met three times at Moonee Valley and he beat her every time. We thought it was her favourite track." DES GLEESON (Chairman of Stewards) "The champion of his era. His Caulfield Cup win was brilliant with the big weight, and he backed up in the Cox Plate and blitzed them. He had a big motor." TONY McEVOY (Head Trainer, Lyndsay Park) Is Northerly better than Kingston Town? "Just. And mainly because of the high quality of the horses he has beaten in the past two years." BRIAN MAYFIELD-SMITH (Top Trainer, Sydney and Melbourne) Is Northerly better than Kingston Town? "No risk these days although I am a big fan of Kingston Town too. But Northerly is a tough champion, a unique horse. And I reckon he's beaten better horses than Kingston Town." RAY HUXLEY (Chief Racing Writer) Is Northerly better than Kingston Town? "I reckon he would get over the top of Kingston Town in Melbourne." ANDRE KASSAY (The Sportsman Newspaper) Is Northerly better than Kingston Town? "He would take the kick out of any horse, including Kingston Town." LES CARLYON (Author) "He fools you every time he races. He has the body language of a loser and a heart as big as the Nullarbor. He invariably looks to be struggling, a shambles of a horse blundering around on memory while his jockey pumps and blusters. Then he gets going. One instant Northerly looks beaten, the next he looks unbeatable. The closer he gets to the post, the harder he tries. He grinds on. And on. And on. He simply refuses to be beaten." What about the winning riders? Here's what they said about the great Northerly... GREG CHILDS (6 wins) "Why was he so good? He was nothing to look at, but he had a spirit, a love for racing and a determination not all horses have. Like all good horses, they pin their ears back and they go for it." DAMIEN OLIVER (5 wins) "His will to win is what I'll remember most. He was never beaten. Most horses can sustain a run for a furlong and a half (300m), he just kept going. He broke their hearts." PAT CARBERY (4 wins) "He found more in a finish than you'd expect. He was always doing the hard yards in a race, yet on the line he'd win easily. He had an unorthodox action but kept winning." PATRICK PAYNE (3 wins) "He defied the odds. He wanted to win." DANNY MILLER (1 win) "A true champion. He had the will to win of a superhorse. He was something special." Trainer Fred Kersley rates his three greatest thrills with Northerly... 2001 Australian Cup "A slashing win in record time from a horse that came out of the blue. To think, no horse has ever gone around Flemington over 2000m quicker than him." 2002 Caulfield Cup and Cox Plate "In a modern-day Caulfield Cup, he carried 58kg to do what they said he shouldn't have been able to do, then backed up a week later to win the Cox Plate." 2001 Cox Plate "I had Sunline on a pedestal, so it was a great thrill to beat her in the race she'd won the two previous years." © 2007 by Thoroughbred Village. All rights reserved.