He might not be contesting The Kosciuszko at Royal Randwick on Saturday afternoon after missing out on a slot in the $2 million country event.
Still, the Neville Boyle-trained Greyworm will grace Sydney with his stunning looks and never-say-die attitude when going around in the Group 3 Sydney Stakes (1200m).
Originally put up as a 250/1 shot in the $2 million event, the famous Northern Rivers sprinter has since trimmed into the modest price of $126.
“I think he will run a good race,” Boyle said.
“I don’t think he’s a 250/1 chance. It’s funny with the betting, and sometimes, if you’re not a commercial trainer, they’ll put a line through you.”
Greyworm wasn’t initially heading towards a stacked Sydney Stakes, which will see the likes of Bella Nipotina ($4.40), Vilana ($4.60), and Airman ($7.50) vying for glory.
Boyle explained that he nominated the nine-year-old for the race, not thinking he would get a start after being put down as one of four emergencies for The Kosciuszko.
“We’re here now. He travelled well overnight, and he surprised me a bit with how spritely he was,” Boyle said.
“He’s in fine fettle, and we’re really looking forward to it. It’s going to be a big thrill to have a runner on the day.
“We would have loved to have got him a start in The Kosciuszko, and we thought we might be coming down for nothing because we were an emergency, and I was unsure if he’d get a run (in the Sydney Stakes); he was way down on the order of entry, and I got the shock of my life when he was included in the field.”
The ‘old grey’ might be longer in the tooth these days, but the nine-time winner boasts an exceptional resume and terrific Royal Randwick record (8:3-1-1).
A Group and Quality winner, the Master Of Design gelding won the biggest race of his career in 2020, taking out the Group 3 Hall Mark Stakes (1200m) at Royal Randwick.
Racing with the Michael, Wayne, and John Hawkes team at the time, he beat home a star-studded field of sprinters, including Trekking, Kementari, Le Romain, In Her Time, Deprive, Tyzone, Brave Song and Signore Fox.
During his career, he also won the 2019 Quality Filante Handicap (1400m) at Royal Randwick, beating horses such as Luvalva and McCreery.
Boyle ended up with the old stager in early 2022, and while the pair took a while to find their feet, the Murwillumbah trainer has Greyworm firing again.
In August, he recorded an impressive four-length victory in the $40,000 Murwillumbah Newmarket, while last time out, he missed the kick and lugged 64.5kg but still flew home to finish third in the $50,000 Untamed Sprint, held at Lismore on September 21.
“He might be an old grey and nine-year-old, but he’ll be the nicest looking horse there; he looks magnificent,” Boyle said.
“He didn’t look like an old horse the other day at Murwillumbah, and that run at Doomben was too quick of a back-up.
“Then at Lismore, he missed the start and gave the winner 10kg and made up a lot of ground to run a good third.”
Despite drawing nicely with gate two and attracting the services of the in-form Kathy O’Hara, Greyworm will undoubtedly go around as one of the outsiders.
Still, his Murwillumbah trainer is just thrilled to be involved in what is NSW’s most significant meeting of the year.
“We’ll jump and be on the bunny but try and get an economical run, so he has something saved for the run home,” Boyle said.
“He’ll follow the rail and should get the run of the race, but it will come down to the quality of those other horses.
“It’s not like he hasn’t met and beaten those types of horses before, but he is racing against some really good up-and-coming types.
“I’ve got no doubt he’ll be right there in the firing line, and he’ll run them along, and at the end of the day, it’s going to be a massive effort and an enormous day, and I’ll just be so happy to be there.”
Greyworm joins other champion country sprinters in the race, with the Danny Williams-trained Shelby Sixtysix ($126) and Terry Robinson-trained Art Cadeau ($126) going around.
