Maximan, which the Trittons claimed for just $25,000 in July, qualified for the $500,000 Inter Dominion decider at Melton this Saturday night with one third and two fourths in the heats.

They drew poorly on Monday in barrier six, the second widest on the front line, for the 12-horse final and he was $126 with the TAB.

Maximan’s connections, though, were just happy to be in the race following his unlikely rise after coming from Kate and Andy Gath’s stables in Victoria.

He was ninth on debut for the Trittons at Menangle but, after a gear change, he won twice and placed four times in six starts at the track to open the way for an Inter Dominion campaign.  

“We had a syndicate looking for a horse and we saw one in a claimer that we liked and claimed him, but we wouldn’t have thought we’d end up where we have,” Shane said. “It’s certainly been a roller-coaster. 

“We were certainly surprised but it’s good for the owners. They are a bunch of blokes who are just happy to have a good horse and they’ve never probably had one as good as him.

“It’s a good story because most of these horses you could never buy, but anyone could have owned him a few months ago.

“It took us a bit to work him out, he was a bit of a weird horse. We had to change a bit of gear and get things right but he’s certainly proven to us that he’s good enough to match it with the best of them.”

The Trittons, with Shane training and Lauren driving, dominated Hunter pacing before moving to Menangle Park almost three years ago. During their stint at Keinbah, they qualified two-time Newcastle horse of the year Mach Beauty for the 2014 Inter Dominion decider, in which he came sixth.

Shane was ruing the draw in six for Maximan but he was pleased to make the final with another bargain buy.

“There were only four barriers left – one, two and eight were the others, which would have all been great, so it was a bit of a bugger,” he said. “But they also said six has won the past three Inter Dominions in Melbourne, so it might be an omen.

“I’ve only had two horses qualify for an Inter Dominion final and they’ve both probably been horses that when we bought them, we didn’t expect them to get this far. We paid $25,000 for Mach Beauty as well. 

“It’s good to be part of it and it’s probably good to be in a situation where there’s no pressure. We’re not going into it worried how we’re going to go, we’re just going into it and seeing what happens.”