It was a day of close finishes at Moruya on Friday, with seven of the eight races separated by less than a neck, and it was a thrilling finish in the $27,000 Club Tuross Cup (1425m).
The Mick Smith-trained Radiohead won the race, but it took some Brendan Ward magic to get the job done.
Ridden a little worse than midfield, Ward was happy to sit back on the rails while Dream Game (Olivia Chambers, $4.40) ran the field along at a good clip.
Turning for home, Ward swerved to avoid a horse, manoeuvring the Queanbeyan galloper from the rails to the middle of the track, entering the home straight seven wide but in the ‘good going’.
From there, Radiohead ($4.60) powered home down the outside, defeating the Kerry Parker-trained The Gift (Jess Del Frari, $11) by a neck, while three-quarters of a length back in third was the Nat Jarvis-trained Napoleon Solo (Emma Ly, $12).
“I was very happy with the run,” Smith said.
“The better ground was out there, and if you go back through my horse’s history, he gets distracted if he gets bottled up and amongst it, so going to the outside was always Plan A.
“It was a great ride by Brendan, and it was good we got on the fence and got through the first half of the race efficiently, and then in front of him, a horse shifted ground, and he had to swerve to avoid one at the top of the straight, but he kept the horse moving through all of that.”
Radiohead entered Friday’s race following a disappointing first-up effort in the 1400m Class Two Highway Handicap at Royal Randwick on June 24.
Second up at Moruya, connections were confident of a better showing, and Smith was pleased to add another Country Cup to the mantlepiece.
“We picked the race out after we failed in the Highway last start, and I thought he was going well enough to win the Highway first up,” Smith said.
“I don’t get carried away with my skills, but he trialled really well, and I thought he was a chance, but the horse wasn’t himself, kicking out at the gates, and he reared at the start.
“After that, we picked this race out, and I was able to clip him, and he looked terrific, and everything went perfectly.”
By Verrazano and out of Street Spirit, Radiohead is a half-brother to five-time winner Street Cred and closely related to eight-time winner Dure, and Smith believes he will get over ten furlongs or further.
“Street Cred owns the 2000m track record at Canberra, so the family has some good 2000m form, and he is related to Dure, which is one of the best stayers I’ve had, and they are all from the same family, and we bred them all,” Smith said.
“We’ll give him some time, and he might be a Country Cup horse, but we’ll try a midweek race; I think he is up to that class.”
In terms of his next target, Smith is considering going back to town for an 1800m Class Three Handicap at Rosehill Gardens on August 5.
“I’d like to take him back for that Highway, but the timing is not quite right, but we’re working it out,” Smith said.
“I would have to consider going from 1425m to 1800m, but I am thinking about it.”
Don Luigi storms home in thrilling Town Plate
While Radiohead’s win in the feature race headlined an excellent eight-race card at Moruya, in the Bodalla Bowling Club Town Plate Benchmark 74 sprint (1010m), it was another thrilling finish.
Apprentice jockey Jess Del Frari gave the Kerry Parker-trained Don Luigi ($7) an inch-perfect ride as he stormed home to beat the Robert and Luke Price-trained Kennedy Choice (Robyn Freeman, $3.80) by a nostril, while a head back in third was the Mike Gatty-trained Gorush Lightning (Emma Ly, $5.50).
In the jockey’s challenge, Kayla Nisbet dominated with three wins, and for all results, readers can click here.
