General Green’s battle plan will see baby platoon turned out with military precision

Never mind the Blue Army, the Green Army comes to town on Friday night when Lincoln Farms will line up six of the nine starters in the opening race for two-year-olds.

We’re used to seeing multiple runners in blue from the Purdon/Rasmussen barn but never before has Lincoln Farms had six starters in one race.

And with Perfect Stride, Double Or Nothing, Man Of Action, Copy That, Sir Tiger and Tommy Lincoln it’s hard to see the stable’s myriad of owners not descending on the Alexandra Park winners’ circle after the race.

Trainer Ray Green … marshalling the troops for a six-strong assault on the opening race at Auckland. PHOTO: Trish Dunell.Trainer Ray Green has been busy working out a battle plan and will summon all his troops and artillery for the night ahead, when they will start 10 runners in all.

Drivers have all been sorted - as well as the stable’s own Zachary Butcher (Perfect Stride), Andre Poutama (Sir Tiger) and Andrew Drake (Tommy Lincoln), he’s roped in Tony Herlihy (Copy That), James Stormont (Man Of Action) and David Butcher (Double Or Nothing).

They’ll bring the team in with three transporters, eight in their big Lincoln Farms’ truck and two each in separate floats to be driven by Poutama and Green’s wife Debbie, and will even give an outside passenger, Alta Venetia, a ride for trainer Ian Moody.

Green will bring in their four race carts from Pukekohe and borrow two more from fellow trainers on the night.

Colours aren’t a problem - Green has laid his hands on five sets of the Lincoln green silks, with Perfect Stride to carry the light blue and yellow diamonds of leading Australian owner Emilio Rosati.

There’ll be enough harness in the truck to start a saddlery and plenty of bodies at Alexandra Park before the night kicks off with stable foreman Craig Sharpe joining the team of drivers to help gear up with Debbie Green preparing her own horse Copy That.

“It’ll be easy enough,’’ says Green. “When I worked with Wolfie (Peter Wolfenden) years ago we’d often have runners in nearly every race, sometimes two and three, and we’d handle it all ourselves.

“And you know what the say, the more people you have the more chance of mistakes.’’

Thankfully, Green will have a couple of races afterwards for all the ungearing and cleaning up, with the stable’s two-year-old fillies Hilary Barry and Beaudiene Blinkz not due to run until the fourth race.

* Check out our separate upcoming story for Green’s in-depth comments on how he rates each of his contenders.