Life at the beach is agreeing with talented performer Shamus who will make his first appearance on Saturday from his new quarters.
The lightly raced five-year-old has been sent north by former trainer Allan Sharrock to Moira and Kieran Murdoch’s Pukekohe stable and is set to begin the next phase of his career when he resumes in the Prezzy Card Sprint (1200m) at Te Rapa.
The Noel and Ron Stanley-raced son of Shamexpress was runner-up in an open sprint at New Plymouth at his last appearance in February after finishing sixth in the Group 1 Telegraph (1200m) following an interrupted passage.
“Allan sent him up to us just for a change of scenery, we’ve done it before with a couple for him and using the beach and changing things up for the older horses,” Moira Murdoch said.
“He’s lovely and you couldn’t get a nicer horse, he’s taken to the beach from the first day and we’ll see how he goes. He’s been with us for a wee while now and I’ve been happy with his work.
“We trialled him at Pukekohe and he ran a nice second, that was just over 800m and he did that really easily.
“We thought we’d go to Te Rapa where he has run well before, he hasn’t had any right-handed races so it’s a good one to kick him off.”
The stable will take a race-by-race approach with Shamus and no firm goals in mind as yet.
“He’s obviously a very talented horse so we’ll just see how he goes, he’s an absolute pleasure to do anything with,” Murdoch said.
The model professional has also showed a particular liking for one dietary treat.
“He’s no bother, but he has got a penchant for Gala apples and can sniff them out anywhere,” Murdoch said.
Shamus has an impressive first-up record with four wins and two placings from eight appearances off a spell and will be partnered in his return at Te Rapa by Jasmine Fawcett.
“Jasmine rode him at the trials and the Stanley boys were happy to keep her on,” Murdoch said.
Shamus has been successful in six of his 13 appearances, including the Group 2 Wellington Guineas (1400m) and finished third in the Group 2 Waikato Guineas (2000m).
As an older horse, he has also been successful in a brace of open handicap sprints and finished runner-up in the Listed Lightning Handicap (1200m).
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