"I wanted to get handy, but she didn't have the gate speed to get across and I got caught three wide.
"I thought I would let her roll and she fought so hard to the line. It was a very good performance."
Watching it all were proud owners Humphrey and Fiona O'Leary.
Humphrey O'Leary said after dominating Whanganui, they knew they had a good stayer on their hands.
"After the Wanganui Cup, this was the target.
"All the planning the trainer does, we mapped out a good plan and it's come to fruition."
But even O'Leary and New Plymouth trainer Allan Sharrock were amazed at Ladies First's stamina after she had such a torrid early trip.
"She was posted three wide around one bend and then two bends and I said 'she can't win'," said Sharrock.
"I'm rapt, but I did think she had got beaten on the line. I'm a bit shocked really – I thought she had run second."
"They all thought she was a wet-tracker, but her last three wins have been on firm tracks."
Speaking on Sunday, O'Leary was still pumped up about the comeback win.
"It was those northern jockeys bullying our jockey from down here.
"They didn't let him in anywhere, they pushed him out and kept him out – but that's riding."
Having executed one long term plan, the O'Leary's and Sharrock will now move onto the next – getting Ladies First to Melbourne in November.
"We'll role the dice right through the Melbourne Cup," said O'Leary.
"Do some Hastings races in the Spring, then a find a suitable buildup."
Sharrock confirmed those plans on Saturday.
"We've pulled her out of the Sydney Cup and she'll go to the paddock and then we'll be looking at the Livamol Classic and the Melbourne Cup," Sharrock said.
For O'Leary, this could mean two bites of the cherry at Flemington, as he shares ownership with his brothers of Who Shot Thebarman, who ran third in the 2014 Melbourne Cup behind Protectionist.
So, to put him on the spot, which of these two proud horses would win if they raced each other on equal terms?
"If it was in New Zealand, you'd say Ladies First, in Aussie, they'd back Thebarman – they just love him."
Also on Saturday, Waverley-trained galloper Sergeant Blast made it two from two in his new summer campaign with a comprehensive win in the $35,000 Rural Trading Post Handicap Open over 1600m at Trentham.
The promising 5-year-old had disappointed in the spring and early December after showing ability in a previous campaign in January 2017, with victory over future Group 2 winners.
However, a New Plymouth 1600m victory set up Saturday's win by half a length under South Island jockey Samantha Wynne.
"I said to Wayne [Crowley], who's one of the owners, I don't think he's ever had a run like that," said trainer Sam Lennox.
"We were laughing at the 600m as it was a just matter of if he was on, he was going to be hard to beat."
Lennox will now make plans to move Sergeant Blast up over 2000m.
Additional reporting by NZ Racing Desk
