David Eustace reveals ‘stern conversation’ that set brother Harry Eustace on Melbourne Cup path with Sea King

Harry Eustace failed chemistry at uni, but it set him on a path that could lead him to joining his brother David as a Melbourne Cup-winning trainer on Tuesday.

Harry Eustace could be the smartest man in the room if he wins the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday.

However, his Melbourne Cup-winning brother quips it was a failed university course which set him on course to take up horse training in England.

Harry Eustace is looking to follow in the footsteps of his brother David with his Bendigo Cup winner Sea King, with racing running in the family blood.

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Speaking to Racenet from Hong Kong, David is able to provide a unique insight into his brother, who once tried his hand at university before taking up the racing game.

“He went to uni and got halfway and dropped out,” David laughed.

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“He was studying chemistry, which he definitely should not have been studying, because neither of us are bright enough to pass that.

“I think he had a lot of fun at Edinburgh for two years, didn’t pass and then had a fairly stern conversation with Mum and Dad, which is what took him to Australia (to work in racing).

After also working in America, Harry returned to his native England to work for William Haggas before going out on his own.

Harry Eustace holding the Bendigo Cup trophy with Declan Bates. Eustace has enjoyed significant success in Australia for English trainer William Haggas. Picture: Brett Holburt/Racing Photos via Getty Images

Eustace brought Sea King Down Under with his Cox Plate runner Docklands, and is now a leading Melbourne Cup hope.

With their parents James and Gay originally encouraging their kids to pursue other careers, David said it only ended up drawing them both to the sport.

“Mum and Dad trained, so we both did similar things,” he said.

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“We always wanted to train, and we weren’t forced into it, we were told not to go into it quite frankly.

“We are both pretty stubborn I guess, we don’t like being told what to do, maybe Harry is a bit worse than me with it.

“Dad didn’t want us to stay at home and just learn off him, he wanted us to travel and learn from others around the world.”

Having been around big races for much of his training career, David says Harry has played major roles in Cox Plates and Melbourne Cup’s in the past.

“Hazza has been around big races, he has been a spectator of Melbourne Cups in the past too,” he said.

David Eustace, who now trains in Hong Kong, with 2022 Melbourne Cup trophy he won with Ciaron Maher. Picture: Vince Caligiuri/Getty Images

“He is going to have a great few days, we have both been very lucky to be in and around it in the past, we spent a lot of time with Charlie Fellows who had Prince Of Arran a few times – we are great mates.

“He had Sir Dragonet longer than we did when he won the Cox Plate, he also had Gold Trip before he came out to Australia, he got scratched that year, but of course he went on to win the Melbourne Cup the following year.

“When he was working for William Haggas, he travelled a lot of horses in Sydney successfully.”

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David ended his training juggernaut with Ciaron Maher earlier this year to make the move to Hong Kong, where he is enjoying a hot start to his solo training career himself.

While he no longer enjoys the luxury of hundreds of horses and endless training facilities, he is hellbent on making it work in the Asian racing Mecca, where the stakes and money are huge.

Harry’s defeated Cox Plate runner Docklands is set to make the trip there from Australia next month to compete in the famous international meeting on December 8, where the Eustace family can again link up thanks to racing.

“It would be great for him to bring that horse (Docklands) over here to Hong Kong for the international meeting,” David said.

“It will be another trip for Mum and Dad, their world tour continues.

“They went out to Bendigo to watch the cup win, they are having a ball and spending a lot of time in Australia.”

Sea King cruising to victory in the Bendigo Cup. Picture: Brett Holburt/Racing Photos via Getty Images

So who will David Eustace be cheering if Sea King and one of Maher’s horses charge to the front at the clock tower on Tuesday?

“For sure I will be cheering for Harry’s horse,” Eustace said.

“If it’s not him, it will be one of Ciaron’s.”

Win, lose or draw on Tuesday, Sea King will head to renowned Murwillumbah trainer Matt Dunn after the Melbourne Cup, to remain in Australia.

Owned by OTI, an agreement was made that Eustace would train him for his Australian spring campaign, before heading north to New South Wales.

After coming out as his second stringer behind Docklands, Sea King has emerged as one of the leading Cup contenders after drawing barrier one for English jockey Hollie Doyle.

Originally published as David Eustace reveals ‘stern conversation’ that set brother Harry Eustace on Melbourne Cup path with Sea King