By David Gilbert
IT was a truly red-letter night for South East harness racing in Adelaide last Saturday night.
Our pacers won four of the eight races at Globe Derby Park, an extraordinary effort considering there were only five horses from this region competing for the evening.
It was the perfect result as the fifth runner finished second, beaten by a fellow local.
Mount Gambier driver Jayson Finnis and Naracoorte trainer Greg Scholefield shared the honours with winning doubles and it all started when Finnis drove the Barry Finnis trained Royal Speech ($11) to victory in the NR 49 pace.
At his third run this campaign, an ordinary barrier draw (5) meant Royal Speech had to do plenty of work in the run but still proved too good and he returns to compete in Adelaide again tomorrow night.
The Scholefield trained Stratosphere ($1.90 fav.) is the pin up pacer of South Australian harness racing at present with his fourth consecutive win in the NR 58-69 pace.
The two heats of the 2021 Golden Nursery for two-year-olds were both won by local pacers to suggest we have an excellent chance of winning the $24,000 final tomorrow night at Globe Derby Park.
The Alyce Finnis trained and Jayson Finnis driven Art Jester ($6.30) upset the applecart in the first heat when he finished too strongly for the odds-on favourite Im Princess Bella.
Scholefield’s double was completed in the second heat when Jawsoflincoln justified his short quote ($1.30 fav.) by leading all the way to defeat fellow local Ever Hoping to make it two wins from as many starts since arriving from Victoria..
“He hasn’t set a hoof wrong since he got here and I’m pretty pleased with what he has done so far, and expect him to keep improving,” Scholefield stated post race.
In tomorrow night’s final, the three locals in the final (Jawsoflincoln, Art Jester and Ever Hoping) have not fared well with the barrier draw in 4,6 and 7 respectively.
Just for good measure, Allendale trainer David Kemp had a winner at Globe Derby Park on Monday afternoon when Ready To Rock, at his first run since late May, was untroubled to lead all the way in the three-year-old pace as the $1.30 favourite.
LOCAL INTEREST IN THE MELBOURNE CUP
THERE will be a couple of excited local parents intently watching the Melbourne cup next Tuesday afternoon.
The Pelican Point based Belinda and Darren Holland are the proud parents of jockey Dean Holland who has the ride on the Symon Wilde (Warrnambool) trained Tralee Rose in the big race.
Belinda is the secretary of the Penola Racing Club and clerk of scales at most Limestone Coast race meetings, while Darren is a former jockey and is the district steward for Limestone Coast racing.
Tralee Rose ran fourth in this year’s Adelaide Cup as an odds-on favourite and Dean has been in the saddle for her past two runs, including a last start win in the Geelong Cup last week.
“It will be Dean’s first ride in the Melbourne Cup and that’s one more than I had during my career,” Darren said.
“We will watch the race at home and have invited a few friends to come and enjoy the afternoon.”
Meanwhile the dream of the Sue Murphy trained Hasta La War running in the Melbourne Cup has come to an end.
Hasta La War ran a splendid third in the Geelong Cup and has had a minor setback since with a corn problem.
If the problem is fully rectified, Murphy is looking at running the gelding in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes over 2800 metres at Flemington tomorrow week, a race that he is assured of a start in.
BUMPER CUP WEEKEND
WITH the resumption of racing out at Glenburnie put on hold until February next year, the new date for the Mount Gambier Cup is April fools day (Friday, April 1).
The new date could prove a big winner for the club as the summer sports will have been completed and the winter sports will be a few weeks away from commencing.
It will not clash with any other local cups and the club is creating history by moving the Mount Gambier Cup distance from 2400 metres back to 2050 metres.
For as long as anyone can remember, the cup distance has always been a mile and a half but, in reality, the time is right for a change.
“We have decided to move the cup back to 2050 metres to try and attract a bigger and better field,” Mount Gambier Racing Club president Peter George explained.
George is on the ball there as, in recent years, the Mount Gambier Cup field has lacked both quality and quantity, regardless of whether it was run in May or December.
It means the first weekend of April will be a bumper cup weekend here in Mount Gambier, with the gallops gold cup on the Friday and the Mount Gambier pacing gold cup on the following night (Saturday, April 2).
DESTINED FOR BIGGER THINGS
THERE were a couple of eye-catching efforts at Naracoorte last week, none more so than the Lee Creek trained Wild Willy in the 1200-metre BM 68 handicap.
Wild Willy made it two wins from as many starts this campaign to win stylishly by more than two lengths to defy a betting drift ($5.50-$8).
Creek had a winning double for the day along with local apprentice Jacob Opperman, while the veteran galloper Flow Meter showed age is no barrier by winning the 2000-metre BM 68 handicap.
The two horses who provided the quinella in the 1430-metre BM 72 handicap, namely Skilled Bunch and Bossy Britches, are both at the start of new campaigns and can be followed with confidence.
Racing in the Limestone Coast this weekend is at Bordertown today with a seven-race program, commencing at 1.20pm.
It is the first meeting of the 2021-22 season for the Bordertown club following the abandonment of its meeting on August 8 due to wet weather and the state of the track.
There should have been some clinking of glasses and a jovial atmosphere in a certain licensed premises on Penola Road last Friday evening.
The Peter Hardacre trained Sebonna ($8) is owned by members of the Mount Gambier club and the six-year-old gelding easily accounted for his rivals in the 1700-metre BM 68 handicap at Gawler.
It was only Sebonna’s second run this campaign and he was ridden in copybook fashion by underrated jockey Karl Zechner.
DONE THE FULL CIRCLE
THIS time last year the proven wet track stayer Bear Arms was quite content in the Ned Walker stable at Millicent, but the past 12 months has seen the mare undertake a roving journey around the South Australia countryside.
Following the shock passing of Walker, Bear Arms was sent to Port Lincoln trainer Simon Drewitt for eight runs during the summer and autumn before switching to the James Dodgson stable at Bordertown.
From there it was up to Murray Bridge for a few runs with trainer Jordan Frew, including a last-start eye-catching fourth in a qualifying heat of the Jericho cup series at Naracoorte on September 26.
Now, Bear Arms is back at Millicent and in the hands of Jeremy Kenny.
Are there any thoughts about pushing on to try and gain a start in the Jericho Cup at Warrnambool next month?
“No, she is out in the paddock having a spell and will return next year when the tracks are wet,” Kenny advised.
