Tiffany Boatman (right) with stable mate Ruby Klemm.
ARARAT - Tiffany Boatman captured her first Victorian Athletic League title of her career last weekend during the St Albans meeting.
Her victory in the 300-metre Women's final also marked the first win of the Marcus Cooper Stable for the 2012/13 season.
Fellow stable runner Ruby Klemm finished third behind Boatman and Wandana's Pamela Austin.
"Tiffany had been running good 300s, but it was a quality field she was up against and I didn't know if she would get up and hold them off," Marcus Cooper said.
"Ruby was starting on the outside of Tiff and they were on the exact same mark (42 metres), so I said to them before the race to work as a team because you don't get this opportunity to race together in a final very often.
"Whoever got the best start I wanted them to lead it and the other to sit on the shoulder so they get that tow around and help each other out and push each other.
"I also said when you hear the others coming, the one behind push out a little bit wider to make it harder for them to come around. Tiffany got out in front and got about a two-metre lead, Ruby probably didn't go with her enough.
"Tiff held that gap and with about 100 to go I thought the girls were going to get swamped but with that they both kicked - Tiffany probably more so than Rubes - they lifted and worked to the line, but it was just the one girl that got just past Ruby."
Boatman had a good day out, also making the final of the 120-metre Novice event where she placed fourth.
Cooper was full of praise for the young runner, who he described as 'always giving 110 percent'.
Fraser Heard also showed plenty of determination making the final of the 800-metre Open race.
Cooper said Heard, who finished at the back of the field in eighth position, wasn't feeling well heading into the event.
"It wasn't a big break between the heats and final so I don't think he had recovered fully," Cooper said.
"He ran a really gutsy heat to get through and then he blew up in the final. A big bear jumped on his back and you could nearly see the claw marks still there I reckon!
"But it was a top effort to make another final in his first year, he is doing really well."
Cooper made it through to another semi final of the feature race, but narrowly missed out on the final of the 120-metre Open Gift.
The veteran runner coming off a handicap of 13.75m finished second in his semi in 12.77 seconds and was just 0.03s off progressing through to the final.
"I am disappointed because I am carrying this achilles injury at the moment. I should have made the final of the Gift easy, but I just got pipped in the end by numbers," Cooper said.
"I can't quite shake it, the problem is I can't push off out of the blocks and get that power ever since the Ararat Gift final.
"Once I am up and running I am flying. The bloke (Darren) Whittaker started behind me off 13.50m and he actually passed me as I was trying to get out of the blocks, that is how much power I haven't got getting out at the moment, once I was up I was able to pass him again and run away."
Also competing from the Cooper Stable on the day was Jake Robinson who finished fourth in his heat of the 70m Open and fifth in heat two of the 120m Open Gift.
Sarah Blizzard placed third in heat nine of 70m Open, third in heat three of 120m Women's and fifth in heat three of 300m Women's, while Brody Taylor came third in heat three of the 120m Novice.
Corey Heard was scratched from his events due to injury.
The stable will next compete at Avondale Heights on February 2, which Cooper said will see more of his runners take to the track.