SUNSHINE COAST REVIEW (SUN, APR 12)

A review of the meeting held at the Sunshine Coast on Sunday, April 12.

Race 1:

Maiden Handicap (Mares) - 1100m
1st - Stellar Rocket; 2nd - Cheryl The Feral; 3rd - Mount Magic

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Kevin Kemp: “We are just hoping that this will be the first of many. It is only her fourth start in a race. She’s shown a bit of promise. She is a lovely big mare. It was nice to see her settle today and hit the line. I know she is going to meet stronger horses than that from now on, but she’ll get stronger too, hopefully.

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Stellar Rocket): 1.80 out to 2.80.
Favourite (Mount Magic): 3.80 in to 2.30. Finished third.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Queen Of The Storm (S. Al Taleei) jumped inwards at the start, forcing Stellar Rocket (R. Goltz) to be checked and taken in on to Our Girl Giggles (N. Yamada). Miss Mazaratti (M. Milford) was a little slow to jump. Apprentice S. Al Taleei, rider of the 4th placegetter Queen Of The Storm, was found guilty of a charge under AR137(b) in that she failed to ride her mount out approaching the finish of the race. Miss S. Al Taleei was suspended from riding in races for a period of 2 weeks, to commence at midnight, 12 April and to expire at midnight, 26 April 2009.


Race 2:

4yo & Up Maiden Handicap (Entires and Geldings)- 1100m
1st - In The Clink; 2nd - Genuine Sin; 3rd - Road From Heaven

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Greg Kennedy: “He pulled a shoe at his last start ... in the barriers. So he went around with three shoes and he is a very bad-footed horse and that he why he stopped last week. It was in the Stewards Report. People should have read it. He led last start, until he started coming to the corner when he started feeling sore. He is a very bad-footed horse ... lost a shoe getting out of the barriers and it cost him. This time he had no such problems. Last time in, he was just racing so well. It was his first prep. We kept stepping him up. I think he is a nice horse now that he has had a holiday.”

Jockey Damian Browne: “His work on Wednesday when I galloped him was sensational on that track. I thought, if he could just get a couple of easy sectionals early and run that sort of time home they wouldn’t beat him, which is pretty much how the race panned out.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (In The Clink): 2.30 out to 2.70.
The winner was the favourite.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Roadtoluck (M. Heagney) missed the start. Pearl Of Paradise (N. Spencer) was tightened for room shortly after the start between Ranchatore (D. Green) and Agent Alvin (B. Evans), which shifted in. Approaching the finish line Roadtoluck (M. Heagney) was tightened for room by Road From Heaven (N. Yamada), which was inclined to lay in under pressure. Pearl Of Paradise and Genuine Sin (G. Butler) raced wide for the majority of the event.


Race 3:

3yo & Up Maiden Plate - 1600m
1st - Master Of War; 2nd - Raw Sienna; 3rd - Apply

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Greg Kennedy (who completed a race-to-race double on the day): “He hasn’t run a bad race yet. Even his second run (when 4.60 lengths back) was good. He was stuck five wide. He is by Red Ransom. His brother was a horse called Red Terror. He won the Packer Plate. He beat Toulouse Lautrec ... so, you know, the breeding is there. They can laugh if they like, but he is heading for the Derby if we can get enough prize-money to get him there. We got him as a two-year-old and it has taken this long to get him ready. All credit to young Lisa (Donovan) - stable rider, worker, foreman! He was a buck-jumper. She has hit the deck more times than I’ve had hot dinners. We’ve got pictures where she has got bruises like a chess board on her back ... you know, from the vest where it has dug into her. He bucked that many times when he had balls and they wouldn’t cut him because he was a Red Ransom. Finally we said, look if you want a race-horse, you know ... or else he won’t race. Every-time he got a fright he used to root. I’ve ridden a lot of rough horses, but he could buck. Put it this way, I wasn’t putting my hand up to get on for a second. So he’s come a long way. Hopefully, the Derby might not be beyond him if we can win a couple of handy races over the journey before then. He is a three-year-old and he will get the journey.”

Jockey Damian Browne: “Look, I think he is going to make a nice stayer in time. The penny hasn’t dropped with him. He did the same at Doomben last time ... he got back and hit the line strongly there. Today they went pretty quick early and that enabled him to find the line again, but I think that once he gets up to 2000m he’ll make the grade.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Master Of War): 1.50 in to 1.40 out to 1.45.
The winner was the favourite.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Imposing Belle (M. Heagney) missed the start. Mythical (A. Erhart) was inclined to over-race rounding the first turn.


Race 4:

3yo QTIS Maiden Handicap - 1400m,
1st - Famous Fortune; 2nd - Kalinga Echo; 3rd - Esbend

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Lyn Patton (whose winner won first-up over 1400m): “He is always going to be a distance horse. At this point we might be thinking a bit too high, but we are thinking Melbourne Cup next year. He is just a terrific stayer. First-up, I thought it was a terrific run. It was his first time on the Cushion Track and the thing was he went back to the stable and he wasn’t even blowing by the time he had his wash, which was fantastic. So he is only going to keep improving. He is only lightly raced and I’ve put all loyal owners into this horse to keep them happy. They’ve all been part of it today. So everybody is happy. They are very, very happy. He is just a big, dopey, sleepy sort of a horse. Likes to save his energy, which is really good because he relaxes in his races and so the jockey can just put him where they want. He was field-shy his first prep. Now he is not, so he sat a lot closer today. He used to be fourteen (lengths) off the lead turning for home and then get beat by four ... so he just needed more experience.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Famous Fortune): 3.50 out to 5.00.
Favourite (Craiglea Pursuit): 3.80 out to 4.00 in to 3.00.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT
Esbend (N. Thomas) jumped away awkwardly. Lukin (A. Pattillo), Big Rippa (M. Heagney) and Biscay’s Best (A. Erhart) missed the start. Near the 200m, Biscay’s Best, which had a tendency to lay in, brushed Craiglea Pursuit (B. Ohlbrecht). Big Rippa raced three wide for the majority of the event.
When questioned regarding the disappointing performance of Rock Our World, K. Pope stated that the horse travelled reasonably well until the 800m, however the colt appeared to resent the kick back and was under pressure a short distance later and failed to finish the race off despite being hard ridden. Trainer T. Miller was at a loss to explain the disappointing performance other than agreeing that Rock Our World may not have been comfortable with the kickback from today's surface. A post-race veterinary examination of Rock Our World failed to reveal any significant abnormalities.


Race 5:

Class 1 Handicap - 1400m
1st - General Iglesia; 2nd - All Spiced Up; 3rd - Justoutaskool

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Mark Webb: “The horse has always been an improving type of horse and he handles this track well. He gets to the line. He is never going to be any champion, but he might measure up to midweek company in town. There were no instructions. I wanted him to win. I didn’t care where he was the running. So, you could say the plan worked.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (General Iglesia): 3.50 out to 3.80 in to 3.50.
The winner was the favourite.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Hunka Burnin’ Love (S. Holcombe) was slow to jump. Near the 500m, Zurge’s Boy (D. Griffin) shifted out to improve and brushed Justoutaskool (J. Kropp). Hunka Burnin’ Love and Justoutaskool raced wide for the majority of the event.
When questioned regarding the disappointing performance of Zurge’s Boy, D. Griffin stated that the horse travelled well until near the 500m where he attempted to make some room to gain clear running inside of Justoutaskool, however the horse then failed to accelerate and respond and despite being ridden along, did not make any ground over the concluding stages. A post-race veterinary examination of Zurge’s Boy revealed the horse to be lame in the off-foreleg. Trainer's representative Mr K. Robinson was advised that veterinary clearance would be required prior to its next race start.


Race 6:

Class 1 Handicap - 1000m
1st - Haizum; 2nd - Shooting Stars; 3rd - Wonkavator

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Merv Lloyd: “He is a funny little horse, you know, because when we first got him, he had a real Hail outlook (a reference to Haizum’s sire). The Hail horses – all they want to do is buck, bite and kick! He did everything, so I had a bit of work on my hands. In his very first start he again tried to be a real Hail, so, at Gympie, he decided to stop at the home turn. So that’s what he did. He stopped. So the bloke who owned him cracked a real one there and said this horse is no good. I said, he’ll be alright. We’ll keep him going. The owner didn’t carry on. He leased the horse to me instead. So I got him then. But this horse here is just going to keep going on. He is a wonderful little horse. His manners now are very good. Jana (Piper) was just telling me that around the barriers, he just went to sleep. Well before he didn’t. All he wanted to do was bite and buck ... so we’ve come a long way. This was a special result for me today. I’m not very well and my prognosis isn’t good, but I’m going to fight it. Moments like this really lift my spirits.”

Apprentice jockey Jana Piper: “That was a very, very special win. Merv (Lloyd) has been one of my biggest supporters since I started riding. Always ... always ... always kept me on, no matter how badly I rode. He is very sick at the moment and, you know, it was really emotional.
“As for the run itself, it was a two-way struggle (with Desiree Gill on Shooting Stars) down the length of the straight. We got pretty close together. She hit me with the stick. I’ve got a bruise on my arm (showing the bruise to confirm the contact). She landed three on me at about the furlong and I thought, well if she is hitting my arm, she is not hitting the horse. She made me work for it. It was really good. She headed me and I put the stick away and just kept punching it out. My horse fought back. He is a tough customer.

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Haizum): 8.00 out to 9.00 in to 8.00.
Favourite (Cayman Islands): 4.00 in to 3.50. Finished fifth.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Cayman Islands (D. Browne) jumped in the air as the start was effected and lost ground. Patton (R. Wiggins) also jumped awkwardly.


Race 7:

Class 4 Handicap - 1100m
1st - What A Success; 2nd - Hyde Park; 3rd - Patties Mate

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Stewart Mckinnon: “The barrier wasn’t a problem. He is a free-running horse. He can just jump out and run. He did have to do some work from the wide alley though, which does add to the merit of the win. His record on the Cushion Track is now four wins from seven starts with two second placings. All my horses now work on nothing but the Cushion Track. I never work on the grass now. I like the even surface of the Cushion Track. Yeah, I guess those who do handle the track – like this one – do get little more confident on it the more they run on it. He’s a four-year-old and he’s been lightly raced. This was only his tenth start. He was only a small horse, we had to wait for him to mature. He was just a slow maturing horse. We bred him. We raced the mother. Now, I reckon he’ll race on till he is an eight or nine-year-old.”

Jockey Damian Browne (who completed a treble on the day to go with the double he scored at Eagle Farm the day before): “He has always shown a little bit of speed in his races and he seems to appreciate this track - the Cushion Track. He is a bit of a track specialist. So we went forward from the draw and he rolled along nicely in front. The saddle slipped a little bit after about fifty metres ... just a little bit. It didn’t hamper me at all really. I managed to stay balanced all the way. It was pretty good.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (What A Success): 3.30 out to 3.80.
Favourite (Hyde Park): 2.00 in to 1.95 out to 2.00.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Red Enzo was declared a late scratching on veterinary advice at 2.55 pm after the gelding injured itself when being unloaded from its float. See The Flames (R. Hinricks) blundered on jumping away.
Hyde Park lost its near-fore plate in running. Lions And Dragons lost its near hind plate in running.


Race 8:

Class 3 Handicap - 1600m
1st - Oscar Osetetch; 2nd - Semi Final; 3rd - Fantastic Movie

WINNER FEEDBACK:
The Bill Baker trained Oscar Osetetch caused a major boil-over in the last race when he outgunned his rivals with a bit to spare once jockey Ryan Wiggins had the gelding to extend in the home straight. Such was the extreme nature of the upset, it remained difficult to go back and find any positive in the winners’ formline that had been missed before the race (which is often the case). Oscar Osetetch had finished last in all four of his starts this prep and had never finished closer than 8.70 lengths behind the winner. He also had the worst of the draw to contend with on this occasion.
That’s why they call it gambling!

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Oscar Osetetch): 26.00 out to 31.00.
Favourite (Davion): 2.80 out to 3.10. Finished fifth.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Davion (B. El-Issa) was inclined to over-race at the heels of Fantastic Movie (E. Wilkinson) rounding the first turn. The horse continued to over-race for some distance. Wing Song (K. Pope) hung out and made the first turn awkwardly. Leaving the 1200m, Semi Final (B. Evans) shifted in and made heavy contact with Secret Request (N. Evans). Godly (A. Pattillo) broke down and was retired from the race leaving the 900m. A post-race veterinary examination of Godly revealed the gelding had broken down in the near-fore tendon. A veterinary clearance will be required for Godly prior to its next race start. Near the 800m, Davion (B. El-Issa) had to be steadied to avoid the heels of Godly when that horse was being eased out of the race after sustaining an injury. Semi Final raced wide for the majority of the event. Davion lost its off-fore plate in running.

STEWARDS RACEDAY SUMMARY EXTRACT:
Summary of action concerning thoroughbred horses:
Horses swabbed:
All winners.
Warnings/bars:
Race 5. Zurge's Boy - Lame off-fore knee - Vet. clearance - LR36(b)
Race 8. Godly - Broke down near fore tendon - Vet clearance - LR36(b)