3 minute read

A long Spring Carnival in Sydney draws to a close this Saturday with $3.5 million up for grabs across three features before the focus switches to the provincials over the next two weekends.

The best on the card comes up in Race 6, the $1 million Inglis Golden Gift.

The Waterhouse/Bott yard won this race for the first time last year with Shangri La Express, and this season saddle up the pre-post favourite NORTH ENGLAND.

The son of first season sire Farnan, who won the 2020 Slipper for Gai and Adrian, debuted in the Breeders Plate over 1000m at Randwick and did an outstanding job to hold on for a very close third after leading and looking the winner until the dying stages. 

Tim Clark had to use the colt up a little in the early stages to find the lead after copping a bump. That effort told in the final 50m when he shifted around a bit under pressure and finally gave up the lead.

The stable sent him to Hawkesbury on 28 October where he trialled impressively. That hit-out and the extra worked poured in over the five weeks since his Breeders run should have him in tip top shape for the 1100m of the Gift.

O'Ole for Bjorn Baker is the danger. She comes off a second in the Gimcrack on the same day as the Breeders. The times and beaten margins on the day show that North England ran about 2.5 lengths quicker than the filly. Her 2kg weight pull offsets that to a degree, but the colt still holds the edge.

Tim Clark will go straight to the lead from gate three and with some additional Tulloch Lodge bone and muscle at the second run he should be too strong. 

The penultimate race throws up a nice each-way chance in MIDNIGHT OPAL.

This four-year-old returned from a five-month spell last start in a 1200m BM78 at Warwick Farm after being gelded over the break. He firmed two points late in betting that day but had no luck in the run, settling at the tail of the field then running into one dead end after another in the straight. 

The winner of that race, Fire Star, is early favourite in Saturday's contest. Midnight Opal meets him 3kgs better this time around and has plenty of scope for improvement second-up, whereas the favourite is eight runs into his campaign. There is little doubt the beaten margin at the Farm should have been significantly less than 4.8 lengths.

It is worth noting that Nathan Doyle's charge tackled the Listed Darby Munro second-up last prep and finished just 2.5 lengths behind the classy but ill-fated Brave Mead. A similar performance on Saturday would certainly be good enough at Benchmark 78 level. 

Jason Collett will enjoy a lovely run just off a decent clip out of gate two and he looks a great chance to run over the top at a nice price. 

SYDNEY SPECIALS

BEST BET Race 6 No. 2 North England.

BEST VALUE Race 9 No. 9 Midnight Opal.