 |
|
| Andrew Scott Queensland Oaks |
By Dennis Ryan
"Nothing ventured, nothing gained" became a catch-cry applied to good effect by Andrew Scott when he took a team of five horses to the Queensland winter carnival.
Scott put his confidence in potential rather than proven performance, with the last Ellerslie open sprint winner Pennacchio the only member of the Matamata trainer's five-strong Queensland contingent with the score already on the board.
From his base at expatriate Allan and Linda Jones's Caloundra stables, Scott settled into his campaign with a measured approach that kept him away from the majors but quickly netted results. One lightly tried member of the Scott team was the Keeper filly My Keepsake, who was included in the firm belief that she had the potential to make the step up to Queensland black-type company.
The catch was that with just one win and minor placings from four domestic starts, My Keepsake's meagre stake-earnings meant the syndicate behind her would have to dip further into their pockets to come up with the necessary expenses. There was one other important consideration - that she would have to add to her $7,600 stakes tally quick smart if she was to make the cut for the races her connections believed she deserved a shot at.
That's why Scott breathed such a sigh of relief when My Keepsake (racing in Queensland as Miss Keepsake) won first time of asking against handy class two opposition at Caloundra in early May. Her share of the $A10,000 race was still insufficient to gain a start in the carnival's first three-year-old filly feature, the Doomben Roses, so it was back to the Sunshine Coast track for another class two event.
Once again the tidy bay filly kept her part of the bargain with another win, downing fellow Matamata-trained filly Our Tigress who was on the exact same mission, to grab a start in the Queensland Oaks, scheduled for two weeks later at Eagle Farm. But when it came to the crunch only My Keepsake made the field, taking the final slot in the 18-horse team ahead of a hapless Our Tigress.
A wide barrier draw would allow My Keepsake no favours, but an ice-cool ride from one of Queensland's best, Chris Munce, enabled a win against the odds. After taking her across to an inside position buried in the body of the field, Munce weaved his way through to present My Keepsake as a place chance with 250 metres to run. Then, quick as a flash, she was chasing Doomben Roses winner Marheta, who had taken what looked like the winning break.
That situation changed dramatically in the final 20 metres, with My Keepsake sustaining her brilliant sprint to collar the Mike Moroney-trained filly and take the classic by an official half-neck. Victory was theirs to savour, trainer Andrew Scott who learnt so much as Moroney's junior partner, jockey Chris Munce who made the most of the opportunity to erase the memories of his terrible Hong Kong incarceration, and owner-breeders Kylie Fawcett and Eddie Wright and their racing partners.
"We knew this filly had it in her to make her mark; every step she took told us that," said Scott, who is in his second season as trainer in charge at the O'Sullivan family's legendary Wexford Stables. "The first challenge was to convince her owners that she was worth taking to Queensland and then it was up to us to justify that confidence."
For Fawcett and Wright, a young couple making their way through their Oxford Thoroughbreds preparation and agistment business, it was gamble that had massive rewards.
"Most of the horses we've bred we've sent to the sales, but this one we decided to keep and race," commented Fawcett. "It took a bit of convincing to send her to Queensland, but even Dave O'Sullivan reckoned it was worth it, so we're thrilled we took that wise advice."
Following her Oaks success, the easy decision was made to give My Keepsake the chance to complete the same double achieved by the O'Sullivan-trained Royal Magic in 1992 with the Queensland Derby. It wasn't to be, however, with a luckless run producing a still highly meritorious third placing.
Eagle Farm on Oaks day was also the scene of another feature win by Scott, with Pennacchio improving on her first-up sixth to another Waikato mare, Wealth Princess, by taking a Listed 1500m event on the support card from Cambridge mare La Etoile. Three weeks later the big chestnut had the last say for the Scott team when she added the Listed Tattersalls Classic in late June.
"That was a fantastic way to round off our campaign," Scott said as he reflected on an innings that comprised eight wins from just 14 starts by his five-horse team.
As mentioned, last summer's sprinting find Wealth Princess was successful early in the carnival, taking out the Gr.3 Glenlogan Stakes at Doomben. Two further starts produced a third placing in the Gr.2 Dane Ripper Stakes and, in her final start for Brent Gillovic, a second placing to Melito in the Gr.1 Winter Stakes.
Early carnival success also belonged to the John Bary-trained The Hombre, who followed victory in the Gr.3 Rough Habit Plate with a second placing in the Gr.3 Grand Prix Stakes. Firebolt did good service for Roger James with a Doomben win in restricted class, second placing to Pennacchio in the Tattersalls Mile and a hugely impressive win under 59 kilograms at Eagle Farm on July 10.
On the same programme Solid Billing notched an important result for his young trainer Craig Ritchie with an all-the-way win under Eddie Wilkinson in the 3200m Queensland Cup. Add to the above performances minor placings in the Brisbane Cup to Ekstreme, the Tattersalls Cup to Indikator, the Caloundra Cup to Tinseltown, and the Glasshouse Sprint to Mufhasa, and this year's Queensland winter carnival lived right up to its reputation as a worthwhile late season undertaking by New Zealand-trained horses.
|
