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Schofield Nearly Beats the “Good Thing”

Published by charl on March 7, 2010

SA jockey Glyn Schofield is a can-do guy and he wasn’t intimidated when taking on Sydney’s boom filly More Joyous (1-10) in the Gr. 2 Surround Stakes (Gr. 2) over 1400m at Warwick Farm in Sydney’s west on Saturday, reports JEFF ZERBST.

The crowd of 10,000 expected the race to be a doddle for Gai Waterhouse’s 3yo, but nobody told Schofield who tried his hand at rewriting the script.

Riding Hurtle Myrtle (17-2) for trainer Matthew Smith, Schofield decided the favourite’s pilot Nash Rawiller was having things too easy up front. So the Bok stoked up his mount and pitched Hurtle Myrtle into the fray on the home turn.

Rawiller looked surprised to have company and when he let down on More Joyous he couldn’t shake off Hurtle Murtle. The latter, indeed, put her nose in front with less than 200m to run and the “good thing” was in mega-serious shit.

Rawiller knew his job was on the line, so he climbed into More Joyous. The daughter of More Than Ready (US) responded to his efforts and the “toppie” rallied to beat Hurtle Murtle by half a neck.
“Nash was having a picnic up front but when I took off he had to spit out his sandwiches and put down his drink,” said Schofield.

“We made a race of it and my filly has run above herself.”

More Joyous is being aimed at the Gr. 1 Coolmore Classic (1500m) for fillies and mares on 20 March and she might well be joined by Hurtle Myrtle, whose trainer said she’d improve with Saturday’s run. Both fillies, however, face the daunting prospect of a tussle with Australia’s best female performer, Typhoon Tracy.

Main race at Warwick Farm was the $300,000 Chipping Norton Stakes (Gr. 1, WFA) and again we saw Rawiller getting home in a thrilling finish.

The talented rider was aboard the Gai Waterhouse-trained Theseo (6-1) who looked the main threat to 17-10 favourite Rangirangdoo (Tim Clark).

Theseo led into the straight but Rangirangdoo quickened up to challenge and edged ahead approaching the 100m mark. But Rawiller knuckled down and got Theseo to fight back gamely and win by a half-head.

The day’s other standout performance belonged to 2yo filly Solar Charged who romped home unchallenged in the Gr. 3 Kindergarten Stakes (1100m).

Bookies quickly pushed the daughter of Charge Forward (AUS) to the top of their boards for the $3.5 million Golden Slipper. Solar Charged is 7-2 favourite for the 3 April showdown. Second fancy is the unbeaten filly Chance Bye (5-1) trained by part-timer Michael Tubman. Beneteau (6-1) is the other runner quoted in single figures.

My fancy’s the 14-1 shot Shaaheq, trained by David Hayes. Runner-up in the Gr. 1 Blue Diamond Stakes, Shaaheq ended a run of four seconds when winning the Gr. 3 Breeders Stakes (1200m) at Flemington on Saturday by 1½ lengths. This Redoute’s Choice (AUS) filly is “on the improve” and will be a big factor if she handles the Sydney way of going.

Why am I writing so much about Sydney when we had “Super Saturday” at Melbourne’s Flemington track? It’s because Super Saturday ended in puddles of water and ice.

Three Gr. 1 features headed the card but only one of them was run. A spooky atmosphere descended just prior to the $1 million Newmarket Handicap (Gr. 1) as the light faded and lightning flashed across the area.

“It looks like Armageddon,” said one commentator, and meteorologically he wasn’t wrong. The instant the Newmarket Handicap (1200m) had been run, the heavens opened and a hailstorm erupted.

The track was soon covered in an icy sheen, and 34mm of rain in 10 minutes saw the car park and tunnels flooded. Several terrified horses were injured as handlers tried to keep them calm and out of harm’s way.

Racing was called off after six events, and the Gr. 1 Australian Guineas and Gr. 1 Australian Cup were postponed until next Saturday at Flemington where the program will now be a ten-race affair.

The $1 Million Newmarket Handicap (1200m) was run in a fraction over 70 secs in eerie yellow light. The 11-2 favourite All Silent, previously unbeaten down this straight 1200m trip, was one of several runners in the large field that struggled to accelerate from off the pace.

The winner was 12-1 chance Wanted (Luke Nolen), who disputed the early lead with Starspangledbanner (15-2) and shrugged that one off with 300m to run. He then repelled the challenge of 9-1 shot Eagle Falls and beat that one home by a length.

“It was a terrific win,” said Moody, enjoying his fifth Gr. 1 success of the season. “Wanted has had a frustrating run of seconds but now he has a Gr. 1 on his resume. There is no more consistent sprinter in Australia, and on this performance there is no better sprinter either.”

The Fastnet Rock (AUS) colt’s victory gave brothel owner Eddie Hayson, part-owner of the horse, his biggest win in racing. This colourful character has had several run-ins with Sydney stewards in recent years but has kept a low-profile recently.

Photo: More Joyous (Nash Rawiller, inside) beats Hurtle Murtle (Glyn Schofield) by a half an neck. (Steve Hart: racenet.com.au).

SEE AUSHORSE: www.aushorse.com.au