Simply, the money was too good.

“The prizemoney in Sydney is unbelievable,” Maher says. “Compared to the world stage, the prizemoney is fantastic. And I don’t need or want any more horses in Victoria where you start racing yourself.”

Winning premierships is good for business, but what trainers really want are the little trophies handed out after winning big races. Maher added the Melbourne Cup last year with Gold Trip to his wins in the Cox Plate, Caulfield Cup, Victoria Derby and Australian Derby.

But, like Waller, he’s yet to win the Golden Slipper.

“It’s a race I’m itching to win,” Maher says. “I look on the race fondly, but it’s the one that’s eluded me.”

His best chance was last year with Coolangatta, who was sent to the barriers as the $3.70 favourite and looked a certain winner with 200 metres to go, looming large in the middle of the straight.

Maher was standing in the middle of a paddock at Warrnambool on the south-west Victoria coast after his best mate Brant Murrihy, the son of retired ATC chief steward Ray Murrihy, had just been married.

“I was watching it on my phone,” Maher says. “I said in the lead-up to the ceremony, ‘Bugger me, you could’ve had it on a different day’. And he said, ‘It’s not about you’. And I said, ‘You’re probably right!’”

Gary Portelli’s Fireburn came driving through on the inside to win the race. Coolongatta held on for third.

“I was very proud of her,” Maher says. “It’s all about your horse and looking after your horse. It’s tempting to win a Slipper with a horse like Coolangatta, but knowing it’s on a heavy ten first up since the Magic Millions [in January], I was rapt with what she did.”

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Another year, another filly and this time it’s Steel City, who made up for all the bad luck she had on the rail in the Blue Diamond to win the Magic Night Stakes last Saturday, confirming her start in the Slipper.

Like last year when Coolangatta drew barrier 11, the barrier gods have not been kind, with Steel City drawing 15.

“Steel City had a nice draw in the Blue Diamond, and it may as well have been barrier 22,” says Maher, who isn’t fussed by the wide alley. “In the Slipper, you need to get a smooth run, relax, not do too much early or late. You need that momentum when you want it so you can get through your gears when you want it.”

If the horse wins, it will enhance Maher’s reputation as a versatile trainer, capable of preparing two-year-old sprinters and dour jumps horses.

He’s a laid-back character, rarely without a cheeky smile on his face, but that betrays his competitiveness and dedication to his craft.

“I was very mindful when I started training because I was pigeonholed as a trainer of hurdlers,” he says. “Then I got the name as training stayers. But I wanted to be known as the trainer of any horse. Nobody gives you the colts straight up. You have to earn your stripes. We had a few Oaks winners and people thought we were good with fillies or mares. I was in a position to buy some nice colts. I’ve regarded myself as the trainer of any horse.”

And many horses, even if it meant he had to cut off his magnificent mane of red, curly hair.

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