By Jonny Turner
Steven McRae will be a popular man at Oamaru on Wednesday.
The trainer takes four horses south and all four have opened at short quotes in their races’ fixed odds markets.
Franco Norton looks a good thing in race 9 following his desperately unlucky last start Cromwell and his nice trial since.
McRae agrees in principle.
“On paper he looks the one you’d be picking.”
“But when you spend every day with him you probably see a few little fishhooks.”
“He is a lovely horse, but he is a day-to-day proposition as a racehorse and we have to be careful about what we do with him.”
“As a result of that he has only had one soft trial so he might be a wee bit vulnerable first up.”
“But I would like to think his natural ability would hopefully carry him over the line.”
“He shouldn’t really be racing at the midweek meetings, he is more an Addington horse.”
Franco Macho looks a big hope in race 8, so long as he turns up in the right mood following two down the track efforts.
“We would love to lead and win there but he has sort of lost his mojo in his last couple of starts.”
“There have been a couple of little problems that we have tried to fix and we are on the right track.”
“I am a bit cautious when they go a couple of ordinary races like his last couple, you start to wonder.”
“But on paper it does look his paper it does look his race to lose.”
“Snow Robyn looks like a nice filly but she will have to work a bit to get to him from her draw (8).”
Legenda Franco debuts for McRae in race 5 and the trainer thinks she can run a big race.
“She has been a bit of a work in progress and she has taken a while to get to the races.”
“But she has arrived in the right race.”
“I would like to think she would be going forward and she would be somewhere near the front.”
“If she was able to find the front, I would like to think she would be hard to catch.”
Emmy starts for the first time for the McRae stable in race 6.
The former All Stars filly hasn’t had any favours with her draw – barrier 9.
“She is very well bred but only a pit-pony, she is probably the smallest horse I have ever taken to the races. “
“I am just trying to find out more about her and how best to work her.”
“From the outside of the gate our hands are a wee bit tied.”
“We will probably have to go back and take short cuts.”
“I thought it is probably Prima Donna’s race to lose, I would be happy if we were running home into a placing.”
Craig Thornley drives all four of McRae’s starters at Oamaru.
