While first-time attendees hailed the day's relaxed, family-friendly atmosphere, many regulars felt the change had dampened the spirit of the event.

Werribee Racing Club moved the race to Sunday in the hope that bringing it forward to January would boost crowd numbers and put the time-honoured race back on the map.

Last year's cup was held in March, as the club sought to squeeze it onto the racing calendar.

Altona's Lavinia Hanson has attended a number of Werribee cups and said the jury was still out on whether the shift to Sunday was a success.

Werribee's Karen Patterson and Lisa Knuckey were also unsure if the new day and date were good ideas.

"There is not the same vibe as the spring carnival," Ms Knuckey said.

Racing club member Rosa Agosta believed the change was worthwhile.

"It's been a good day. It has been a bit more relaxing [than previous cups] and there seems to be more people."

First-time attendees Debbie McDonald and Daryl Brian also said they enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere.

Werribee Racing Club chief executive Jeremy Crawford was confident racegoers would grow to appreciate the Sunday event, viewing the change as a chance to stage a more family-friendly community event.

"There was a different atmosphere than in the Spring Racing Carnival and we want to continue to build on that and provide kids activities for families," he said.

"We have got a huge population and a lot of families living in the area.

"We don't want to make it all about the racing because [the cup] is outside of the spring carnival.

"We want to get people down to the track and enjoying the day."