‘‘Go The Cleaner!’’ was cheered by school children and town veterans alike as the muscled race horse was drawn from its stable to parade for onlookers.

It could be a case of three-times lucky for trainer Mick Burles and The Cleaner crew, as one of the owners had recently won twice in Keno.

‘‘Let’s hope so eh?,’’ Mr Burles said yesterday.

‘‘He’ll give 110 or 120 per cent, he just doesn’t give in this horse, he doesn’t give in, he’s a tough bugger.’’

He said high hopes surrounded the horse, which was sure to put on a good performance this weekend.

‘‘He’s good up in the brain, he’s matured and he’s just a lovely bloody horse,’’ Mr Burles said.

‘‘It’s fantastic (to get this much support from the town), I didn’t expect any of this — you’re not expecting a parade like this for god’s sake, he must mean a lot for the people.’’

If successful in the plate, The Cleaner could see Longford reaffirm its reputation for breeding strong race horses.

‘‘It’s the oldest race track in Australia still in use, Piping Lane won the Longford Cup then won the Melbourne Cup,’’ Mr Burles said.

‘‘Now I’m trying to emulate that with the Longford Cup and Cox Plate.

‘‘It’s one of the biggest weight-for-age races in the world, they come from all over the world to run in it — it’s a pretty prestigious race.’’

The Cleaner was given a police escort from Stubbs Stables as film crews and crowds watched on.

The $3 million Cox Plate Cup will be run at Moonee Valley tomorrow.