[1] Bart Cummings bought the horse for $4,000 in New Zealand for his Adelaide clients, Jack and Mary Harris and brought in Hugh and Gloria Gage from Sydney as partners.
Gold and Black was sired by In The Purple (France) and his dam was Gem (by Talismano).
In early 1977, Gold and Black fell seriously ill with "travel fatigue"[3] and his life was briefly in danger but Cummings restored the horse to health for his spring campaign.
At Flemington in November Gold and Black started 7/2 favourite for the Cup after placing second in the Mackinnon Stakes behind Sir Silver Lad.
Carrying a weight of 57kg he won by a length from the Australian horse Reckless with Hyperno in third.