The New South Wales town of Moree, on the banks of the Mehi River, lies on the Moree Plains Shire of the state and is best known for its agriculture and cotton. The area was first inhabited by the Weraerai and Kamilaroi peoples prior to the arrival of Major Sir Thomas Mitchell in the 1830s. Squatters then began to arrive in their droves and the town began to grow. Moree has certainly staged races since the 1880s, with the inaugural Moree Cup held in 1881. The next year two meetings were held in March and November, with principal race results shown below.
Thursday 9th March 1882
Combadello Handicap
1. Yarie
2. Florin
3. Infant
Moree Town Plate
1. Shamrock
2. Mirabeau
3. Lemonade
Friday 10th March 1882
Moree Handicap
1. Mirabeau
2. Young Chester
3. Shamrock
Moree Hurdles Race
1. Blue Tom
2. Emperor
President’s Cup
1. Lemonade
2. Mirabeau
3. Darkie
Thursday 16th November 1882
Moree Handicap
1. Sportsman
2. Darkie
3. Cremorne
I am grateful to Vinny Hinde for the rare 1912 Hospital Races badges shown below:-
A number of Race Clubs organised races in the early part of the 20th century, including the Moree Racing Club, the Moree Picnic Race Club and the Hospital Races. In May 1930 the Moree Race Club commissioned a Gold Cup, donated by Mr R A Read of Vitonga, designed by Messrs Fairfax and Roberts of Sydney, and made by Messrs A C Reid & Co. At the same time a gold mounted whip was donated by Mr A Sadler of Balo Street, Moree for presentation to the winning rider.
Wednesday 4th June 1930
Moree Gold Cup over 7 furlongs
1. Shrill Trill (12/1) owned by Mrs T C Hinder and ridden by Flanagan
2. Sir Christopher (5/1) owned by Mr H R Munro and ridden by J Coutts
3. Garrula (6/1) owned by Mr E Welsh and ridden by W Blundell
9 ran
Moree Cup winners in the early 20th century
(A full list of winners is available on request)
1931 Moree Racing Club Handicap over 7 furlongs was won by Sir Dall (5/1) owned by Mr C E McKecknie and ridden by Armstrong, beating Flying Shot (8/1) and Chrys Art (6/1)
1932 Moree Racing Club Handicap over 7 furlongs was won by Gannon (6/1) owned by Mr J H Dawson and ridden by D Hillier, beating Two Rings (3/1) and Bathbrick (3/1) 7 ran
Today it has a population of almost 7,500 and continues to run its own very successful racecourse, where the highlight of the racing calendar is the Moree Cup over 1400 metres, traditionally run on the first Sunday in September.
Recent Moree Cup winners
(A full list of winners is available on request)
2009 Moree Cup ($16,250) over 1400 metres was won by Geigeron (100/30) trained by Steve Hodge and ridden by Blake Spriggs, beating Scarbank and Morning Flare 9 ran
2010 Moree Cup meeting was abandoned
2011 Moree Cup ($16,250) over 1400 metres was won by Izababe (2/1 fav) trained by Peter Nestor and ridden by Kody Nestor, beating Elstrata and Mafioso 14 ran
2012 Moree Cup ($17,460) over 1400 metres was won by Poor Judge (5/1) trained by Anthony Honess and ridden by Darren Jones, beating Clever Hans and Usain Prince 10 ran
2013 Moree Cup ($17,460) over 1400 metres was won by Winning Review (13/2) trained by P Anderson and ridden by Alex Stokes, beating Mossamine and Clever Hans 12 ran
2014 Moree Cup ($17,460) over 1400 metres was won by Monashee Woods (12/1) trained by Sue Grills and ridden by Sophie Young, beating Single Spirit and Eanie Meanie 13 ran
2015 Moree Cup ($17,460) over 1400 metres was won by San Sabarto (10/1) trained by William and Stafford Wain and ridden by Jesse Graham, beating Skip Town and Arawak 14 ran
2016 Moree Cup ($23,025) over 1400 metres was won by Dark Mojo (16/1) trained by Brett Thompson and ridden by Sophie Young, beating Playing Game and Lonely Orphan 14 ran
2017 Moree Cup ($21,970) over 1400 metres was won by Belflyer (13/8 fav) trained by John Shelton and ridden by Ben Looker, beating Mishani Stealth and Maybe Even You 14 ran
