Dalasan, who boasts 10 top-five Group 1 finishes without winning one, hadn’t tasted success since the Group 3 Chairman’s Stakes in April 2020 but he showed there is still some fight in those six-year-old legs, grinding away in the straight to take out the Listed race first-up.

The finish was a messy one as Jason Holder and Dalasan crept in from the outside late, crowding the runner-up Just Folks, at the same time as Barend Vorster and Oh Mo drifted out from the inside, which saw Next Generation (Jake Toeroek) and Zoulah (Kayla Crowther) get badly chopped out.

Melissa Julius, who was on Just Folks, fired in a protest alleging interference in the closing stages, but that was quickly dismissed by stewards.

Leon Macdonald has won the Leon Macdonald Stakes! 😍

Dalasan is BACK! @RacingSApic.twitter.com/65k7gHMaMT

— Racing.com (@Racing) August 27, 2022

Once that news filtered through, there was a cheer in the Morphettville Parks mounting yard from a big group of connections, who could finally celebrate a much-deserved victory with a horse who deserved a day in the sun after being so consistent at the top level for so long.

Macdonald had won the race previously when it was known as the Penny Edition Stakes – in 2012 with Southern Speed – but this is the first time he’s collected the trophy since it was renamed after him in 2020.

“That means a lot,” an emotional Macdonald said.

“It’s sensational. If he’d had got beat it would’ve been very disappointing.

“Once we get into the room we were never going to lose. I think a lot of pressure was coming from the inside, not the outside, and he did get interfered with by the runner-up at the 150m.

“It was a good result – he’s a good horse.”

Dalasan, who has now collected more than $3.5m in prizemoney from his 36 starts, will head to Melbourne for his next target with Macdonald likely to look for races just below that very top level.

Soft win on the line for Courageous Hearts 😍@RacingSApic.twitter.com/8dyyNwGHaT

— Racing.com (@Racing) August 27, 2022

He always felt the long drought was simply a case of being pitted against the very best horses.

“The owners wanted to win a Group 1 with him and that’s why he was in those races. I’m sure it wouldn’t have been 28 months if we aimed at the level just below,” Macdonald, who trains in partnership with son-in-law Andrew Gluyas, said.

“He’s just been a great horse, right from day one. He should’ve won the VRC Sires’ Produce as a two-year-old and he finished second (to Russian Camelot) in probably the best Derby ever run in SA.

“We’ll find races for him in the spring – and they don’t have to be Group 1 races either. A Group 2 or Group 3 will be fine. There’ll be a nice race for him.”

The stable finished the day with a double after Courageous Hearts broke his maiden with an effortless display in the third race.

While the South Australians managed to hold on to the feature, it was a big day for the Victorians, who snared half of the 10-race card with Merry Mac Boy, Aeecee Dolce, Harbourmaster, Rigal Star and Heywood all claiming their respective events.