Moody and Coleman bidding to keep the juvenile ball rolling
In-form trainers set to saddle impressive maiden winner Skipjack at Flemington
Co-trainers Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman are hoping to keep their late-season juvenile success going when Skipjack (Rubick) puts his unbeaten record on the line at Flemington on Saturday.
The impressive maiden win registered at Wednesday’s Sandown meeting by their colt Kirk (Blue Point), a $325,000 Rosemont Alliance purchase at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, was the stable’s fifth two-year-old triumph from the past three weeks.
And the baby boom could well continue on Saturday, with the trainer set to send speedy juvenile Skipjack down the famous Flemington straight in the Russell Dawson Plate (1000m), while the colt’s stable companion Moana Kohala (Ocean Park) will bid for a breakthrough win in the Byerley Handicap (1800m) on the same card.
With the likes of Yulong’s impressive Caulfield winner First Settler (Written Tycoon) amongst his opponents, Skipjack will face a significantly stiffer assignment than the one he encountered on his debut at Ballarat in March, his only start to date.
Purchased by his trainers and partnership with successful syndicator Wylie Dalziel from the Glenbeigh Farm draft for $200,000 at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale last year, the colt has improved both physically and mentally since that all-the-way victory; and provided he handles both the straight and the likely testing conditions, Coleman sees no reason why he cannot fly fresh again.
“He’s really developed in his time off, you can see he’s grown up and has furnished really nicely so we’re very happy with how he’s come back,” she said.
“He worked well this week and he’s had a couple of nice trials leading into the races, including a trip to Wangaratta. When he trialled there it was quite heavy that day and he seemed to go quite well on it, until they do it on raceday you never quite know but we’re confident he’ll be okay and besides, a heavy surface at Flemington is probably much easier for horses to handle than at most other venues.
“There’s definitely some improvement to come from a fitness perspective because he’s obviously not completely screwed down yet, but he performed well first-up on debut so he goes well fresh. The favourite [First Settler] was very impressive on debut so he looks hard to beat, but it will be interesting to see where our guy stacks up and if he can win, then he might have a very bright future ahead of him.”
The son of Swettenham Stud’s resident sire Rubick (Encosta De Lago) will jump from barrier one with Damian Lane taking over the reins from Linda Meech, who was on board for his debut triumph.
Coleman was also hoping to saddle up Gallant Son (Written Tycoon), who bolted in by six lengths in a recent Sale maiden. However, after detecting signs of mild shin soreness, the Pakenham-based team instead elected to send the two-year-old for a freshen-up with a view to unleashing him in the early part of spring.
Despite the minor setback, Coleman is predicting a bright future for the colt, whose dam Plucky Belle (Mossman) won the Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m) for the Esplin family, in whose distinctive tartan silks Gallant Son also races.
“He’s got the best nature for a colt as well as plenty of ability, which should take him a long way,” said Coleman.
“It was obviously disappointing to scratch him from Saturday’s race, because we were really excited to see what he could do and wanted to test him down the straight for the first time. But in the long run it always pays to take a patient approach with these babies, and hopefully he’s got a long and successful racing career ahead of him.”
Another son of Written Tycoon (Iglesia), current race favourite First Settler, will attempt to justify the faith shown in him by punters and, more importantly, by his co-trainers Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr.
In light of the strength in depth of their stock of juveniles, the fact that First Settler – who cost co-owners Yulong and his trainers $750,000 at the 2023 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale – sits near the top of the pecking order would suggest the boom on him is entirely valid.
Mick Dee, who rode First Settler to his two-length debut win over 1000-metres at Caulfield at the end of June, retains the ride on the chestnut colt, whose mare Graciousness (Street Cry) won one race for her trainer Chris Waller and owner-breeder Gerry Harvey.
“He’s always been in the top three of our two-year-old ranks,” said Kent Jnr.
“To sit three deep at Caulfield on debut and still put them away like that was quite arrogant. He put a big margin on his rivals and we feel there’s more to come from him. The straight is always an unknown and it’s a big field, which could make things interesting.
“But if he can handle the straight and show the progression we think he’s capable of, then there’s obviously a pretty big Group 1 at Flemington in the spring [Coolmore Stud Stakes] that we’d have in mind for him.”
Raced by a consortium of owners including Yulong, Rupert Leigh, Rick Smith, Noel Greenhalgh, Guy Mulcaster and his breeder Gerry Harvey, First Settler will start from barrier 13 on Saturday.