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Sulky Shorts - Shepparton News 27/04/18

Rock shoots for rare double

PITT HAS HIS FILLY PRIMED FOR VICTORIAN OAKS AND SHEZ GOING TO TAKE A LOT OF ROLLING FROM BARRIER

Shepparton-trained pacer Shez All Rock will be striving for a rare double when she contests the Group One $150 000 Victoria Oaks tonight at Melton.

Picture: Stuart McCormick

Ready to rock and roll: Top class filly Shez All Rock is favourite to win tonight’s Victorian Oaks at Melton.

The last filly to complete the NSW-Victoria Oaks double was the Bob and Vin Knight mare Jane Ellen in 1989.

Shez All Rock blew her rivals away in the NSW Oaks on February 24 and has been kept up to the mark since then with a win at Shepparton and then again in her Oaks heat last Saturday night when she led and was most impressive again.

After her NSW Oaks win Shez All Rock was sold to American interests, but she has remained in Australia for the time being under the care of her Shepparton trainer Mark Pitt.

She is heading for New Zealand next week to contest the New Zealand Oaks and possibly the Harness Jewels during the next month.

Pitt couldn’t have been happier with Shez All Rock’s barrier three draw in the 2240 m event for threeyear-old fillies and is confident his filly will perform well while appreciating the depth of talent in the field.

Shez All Rock has been installed as a $1.70 favourite in early fixed odds markets with Sociable and Nostra Villa the most fancied runners to beat her. Pitt agrees. ‘‘Nostra Villa could be the one to beat, but I also liked Sociable’s run in the heat,’’ Pitt said yesterday.

Pitt believes Shez All Rock can lead from her barrier, but if she can’t he will have a back-up plan.

‘‘We’ll just have to see how it works out on the night,’’ he said.

Shez All Rock has suffered only one defeat in her seven starts.

That was when she was beaten in track record time by Higherthananeagle at Cobram on February 5.

Her six career wins and one second placing to date have already netted her $182 850 in prizemoney earnings.

Lochinvar by far

Lochinvar Art bumped into a couple of smart ones on debut at Bendigo, but the Laura Crosslandtrained pacer was quick to make amends with a dashing win in the Wal Watson Memorial Pace for twoyear-olds last week at Cobram.

Driven by David Moran Lochinvar Art worked to the front early and that was the end of the penny section for her rivals in the 1670 m dash.

With a 57.6 last half including a 28.2 last quarter in 1:56.9 mile rate time, Lochinvar Art careered away at the business end of the race to beat the Dave Farrar-trained and Damien Wilson driven outsider National Draft by by more than 16 m with the Leeton visitor Heart Of Cooper filling the minor placing.

On his debut at Bendigo on April 12, Lochinvar Art finished third to the impressive Betternbetter and Its All Business in 1:54.3 mile rate time, so it was little wonder he was sent out a $1.20 favourite at Cobram.

By Modern Art out of the Ponder mare Ponder in Paris, a winner of four of 11 starts, Lochinvar Art looks well above the ordinary.

Neptune is king

After second placings at Warragul and Maryborough at his previous two outings, The Neptune Kid went one better at Cobram, sprint laning to victory in a C0 Only class race for Avenel trainer Wayne Potter.

Reinsman Nathan Jack was able to position The Neptune Kid behind the pacemaker Crocodile Kid in the 1670 m event and took the short way home in the run to the judge to beat the pacemaker with the favourite Zahara Zuri filling the minor placing.

It was just the fourth trip to the races for the four-year-old daughter of Blissfull Hall who is out of the winning Armbro Operative mare Solar Operative who has had only one other foal make it to the races but for only one start.

However, Solar Operative is out of the extra smart French Chef racemare The Milky Way who won 10 of her 23 starts.

The Milky Way has also proven herself in the broodmare barn with seven winners including the extra smart Teo Enteo, a winner of 27 races.

The Neptune Kid was the first leg of a driving double at the meeting for Jack.

Jack also partnered Tact Bess, a pacer he trains and drives, to win the Tom Kennedy Memorial threeyear-old race.

Tact Bess, who is a filly by Auckland Reactor and has Shepparton Harness Racing Club life member Laurie Cormican in the syndicate which races her, fought out the finish with the Craig Turnbull-trained and Mark Pitt-driven La Player when making only her third trip to the races.

Grin when you win

Pacing mare Maggies Grin likes this time of the year.

The Grinfromeartoear mare hadn’t won since last May — that’s 19 starts ago — but got the monkey off her back at Cobram last week.

Driven by Donna Castles, the Linton Power-trained Maggies Grin led for most of the way and just held of a challenge from the Glenn Douglas-trained Flight Officer to prevail by a head.

The win was well deserved for well known owner and Shepparton businessman John Baldi who along with the trainer owns Maggies Grin who was previously trained by Max Gowers.

Mick finds the trick

A set of hopple shorteners has dramatically turned around the fortunes of trotter Jackson Square.

Kyabram trainer Mick Blackmore added the shorteners to Jackson Square’s gear after bungling some standing starts and the result has been two dashing wins.

After a brilliant getaway which led to an effortless win at Shepparton on Kyabram Cup night when Blackmore made a return to the sulky after five years, Jackson Square did the same to his rivals last week at Cobram with regular reinsman John Caldow back in the sulky.

Again Jackson Square made a quick start from the 10 m strand and worked to the front early before pulling away in the home straight with a blistering 28.5 last quarter to beat the runner-up Nica Macdonon by more than 18 m with the John Hallam-trained Scorching Along filling the minor placing.

Out of the talented winning Yentls Image mare Front And Square and bred and owned by keen Stanhope trotting stalwart Mac Poole, Jackson Square has now won five of his 18 starts and in his current form will build handsomely on that record.

Dining out on Lunch

Confident support for Euroatrained Lunchwitharthur was justified when the young trotter stepped out in a three-year-old trotters race on Tuesday at Menangle.

The son of Majestic Son gave a start to the bulk of the field after being inconvenienced by a galloper at the start, but his trainer-driver Cameron Maggs didn’t panic, worked the trotter gradually into the action, and was rewarded with a strong win.

Lunchwitharthur was having just his ninth start, but had shown with a win at Kilmore in March he had his share of ability and punters agreed and he was backed in from 11/1 into 5/1 on fixed odds at Menangle.

Out of the winning Malhana Gindin mare Annika, Lunchwitharthur is a half-brother of the multiple winner Fiftyshadesofbrown who is by Pegasus Spur.

Lunchwitharthur made the trip north with the David Jack-trained and driven two-year-old Moreton Bay who ran second, but was relegated to third in a heat of the twoyear-old foundation series after galloping near the finishing line.

Maggs was back in Victoria the next day to partner the Jack-trained Call Me Hector to an effortless win when a hot favourite on Wednesday night at Swan Hill.

Kima’s running hot

There’s just no stopping Kima Frenning at the moment.

After a big week the previous week, including a win on the David Aiken-trained Im The Boss in the Mildura Cup, Frenning represented Victoria in the South Australian Reinswomen Invitation series at Globe Derby last Saturday night where she landed a winner, Bonnies A Beauty.

Back in Victoria for the Kilmore meeting on Monday Frenning was again in the winner’s circle, driving the Vince Vallelonga-trained Tarelton Riley to victory at odds of nearly 15/1.

Frenning will be keen to continue her hot streak tomorrow night at Shepparton where she will partner Im The Boss, a pacer she has already reined to two country cup winners in the Shepparton Gold Cup.

Bumpy day for Josh

Avenel horseman Josh Aiken had a mixed day at Cobram last week, but still finished well in front.

Aiken won on Trendy Bromac, a horse he trains, much to the delight of punters who took the short odds and anchored the pacer in the first leg of the quaddie.

But in the following race Aiken went down on the short-priced favourite Heavenly Shades who was gunned downed by another Aveneltrained pacer, the Ian Montgomerytrained and driven Boy From Bondi, who was a 16/1 shot.

But Aiken quickly atoned for that defeat on the Clive Dalton-trained Hugh Victor which also wasn’t appreciated by many quaddie punters as he was 14/1 shot.

Old man ripper

Pacing marvel Destreos reached a magical milestone — 100 wins — when he saluted at Devonport last week.

Mark Yole piloted the 14-year-old to the win where he got no favours, but was still able to beat his rivals, most of which were less than half his age.

The super pacer recorded a mile rate of 1:57.7 with a 58.7 last half to bring up his century of wins at his 450th start.

Destreos has also recorded 71 seconds and 64 thirds during his stellar career with a good portion of wins recorded at Albion Park, Queensland where he campaigned for most of his career.

Super Saturday call

Making Saturday night’s again for Victoria’s metropolitan meetings in the 2018-19 season makes a lot of sense.

With the majority of the state’s standardbreds domiciled north and north west of Melbourne access to Melton on Saturday nights is certainly less stressful than Friday nights for trainers who have to negotiate Melbourne traffic.

Thoroughbred night racing is now entrenched on Friday nights as well and that’s another plus for the standardbreds who won’t have the same opposition when it comes to fighting for the punting dollar on a Saturday night.

It all adds up to being a decision of common sense and the trainers I have spoken to, who regularly have horses at metropolitan meetings, have given it the thumbs up.

Have a listen in

ONE FM (98.5 on your FM dial) will be bringing you all the action of tomorrow night’s Shepparton Cup meeting.

Local trots guru Rod Booker will head up the commentary team.

 

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