Month: August 2022

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Tavistock mare Niffler was back to winning ways at Randwick where she coasted home under a perfect ride from James McDonald. The dependable five-year-old advanced her record to five wins and five placings from 12 appearances from Chris Waller’s stable. Off the back of an uncharacteristic previous failure on the course, Niffler was away well from a handy gate to sit in fifth spot. McDonald peeled three wide at the top of the straight and the mare strode to the front 150 metres from home to put the race to…

Victorian trainer Danny O’Brien pulled the right rein with comeback galloper Showmanship, who ventured to Sydney and landed the Gr.3 Show County Quality (1200m) at Randwick on Saturday. The seven-year-old gelding had also been an acceptor for the Listed Carlyon Stakes (1000m) at The Valley but connections decided to run at Randwick on a drier Soft 5 surface than the Heavy 9 conditions in Melbourne. Showmanship notched his eighth win from ten starts under a good ride from James McDonald ride, the gelding’s first Group win coming from his second…

Three-year-old colt Virtuous Circle narrowly prevailed in the Hugh Wallace-Smith Handicap (1500m) at The Valley on Saturday, to make the perfect start to his classic season. Prepared by Kyneton trainer Liam Howley, the Almanzor colt rocked punters when scoring at $61 in the Mornington Sires’ (1500m) back in March, and again got the better of the betting public when saluting at $26 to extend his record to two victories from three starts. A Group One winning trainer, Howley has made no secret of how highly he rates the New Zealand-bred…

The Ken Rae and Krystal Williams-Tuhoro stable enjoyed another successful day out on their home patch at Ruakaka when they picked up a winning double including the Noel Reed Memorial (1400m) with Zelenski. Having started the day well with a win by maiden galloper Vegas Strip, the father and daughter combination had high hopes for speedy three-year-old filly Deploy in the Gr.3 Cambridge Stud Northland Breeders’ Stakes (1200m). The filly had to settle for fourth after suffering interference from eventual runner-up Pacific Dragon in the closing stages. But the stable…

Last season’s Gr.1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) winner Lickety Split showed she will be a force to be reckoned with in the three-year-old feature events over the next few months with a determined effort to win the Gr.3 Cambridge Stud Northland Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) at Ruakaka. The Andrew Forsman-trained daughter of Turn Me Loose had won her first two races, including the Group One juvenile feature at Ellerslie, before enduring a torrid run when seventh in the Gr.1 Manawatu Sires Produce Stakes (1400m) to round out her two-year-old campaign. Given a…

The Shaun Phelan-trained Hit The Road Jack showed his staying prowess when landing a captivating edition of the Hirepool Ruakaka Cup (2200m) on Saturday, providing his conditioner with his first solo training success. There was no loitering in the 2200m contest, with eventual runner-up Chevron setting a strong early tempo and when the pace slackened in the back straight, apprentice jockey Elen Nicholas was quick to urge Hit The Road Jack to circle the field and take up the role of pacemaker. The six-year-old son of Jakkalberry refused to yield,…