The Cup triumph capped a winning double on the day for both Cheers and Drury.

Cheers’ galloper Zar Zar Binks ($7) won the opening race, while Drury took out the Newmarket aboard the Sue Grills-trained Tomcatnaround.

Drury said the Cup win on Zippy Zariz ($6) was one of the biggest of her career so far.

“This (win) rates highly, for sure,” the 22-year-old, who has a good winning strike-rate at the Armidale track, said.

Cheers said she was quietly confident heading into the Cup.

“(Zippy Zariz) is a tough little fella,” she said. “He’s only three, but he’s pretty rock-hard fit and he deserves to win a good race.

“He’s come into today with winning form, and Jess rode him a treat.”

The unlucky Cup runner was the Paul Grills-trained Dusty’s Felt, who was posted wide for most of the 1900m trip but still fought on to finish third.

Armidale Jockey Club secretary-manager Jim Dedes said the Cup day crowd was about 2000, well down on recent years.

“Unfortunately we haven’t the usual big turnout of uni students, which means we’re down about 1000 on what we usually get on Cup day,” he said.

He may not have won a race on Monday, but Marlon Dolendo, who returned to the saddle on March 2 from a life-saving kidney transplant last August, continues to win hearts.

Dolendo said he was feeling in good shape after a successful return, in which he rode seven winners from his past 16 rides.

“I’ve been back riding since December, and I’m now pulling up with no dramas at all from race-riding,” the Port Macquarie hoop said. “I never thought I’d be back riding again, and I just appreciate being back in the saddle much more now.”