3 minute read
A look at some of the other angles from Five Diamonds Day at Rosehill.
Bateup on Fire in Midway
Improving gelding Direct Fire is set to fly the flag for Kembla Grange trainer Theresa Bateup at The Gong meeting in two weeks after racing away with the Midway Handicap (1300m) at Rosehill on Saturday.
The four-year-old, who started at $5.50, scooted along the inside for Amy Mclucas to defeat fellow Kembla mare Monte Supreme ($3.50 fav) by 1-1/4 lengths with Byron ($5.40) another half-length away third.
The Gong is Kembla's feature fixture of the year and Bateup has pinpointed an ideal assignment for Direct Fire on her hometown card.
"Another Midway over 1400 and he's a horse that is going to improve as he gets up over a bit further," Bateup said.
"I'm so proud of him, so proud of Amy's ride. He is one of my favourites in the stable.
"He did a super job last prep. He was in work for a long time and he started off this big, gangly, raw horse that wanted to do a lot of things wrong and he has just grown up so much."
Bateup is rarely without a city-class horse in her stable having trained the likes of metropolitan performer The Guru and Group winner Monegal.
Long-term stakes goal for Widdup mare
Brad Widdup has black-type aspirations for Confess Our Dreams, who he has compared favourably to his former stakes-winning mare Tintookie.
The daughter of Shalaa proved a class above her rivals to snare Saturday's Ranvet Handicap (1100m) by a comfortable 2-1/4 lengths, defeating Passeggiata with Angel Fund another 1-1/2 lengths away.
Widdup will see how she comes through the race before deciding whether to give her one more run or pull up stumps to focus on the autumn.
"It was great, she is starting to learn her craft," Widdup said.
"She did things wrong last start but still won and I think she has learned from it because she was terrific today
"If you can win a Saturday race you are not far from black-type, especially with fillies. You can place them."
Tyler Schiller was aboard Confess Our Dreams for the first time on Saturday and felt she was a mare on the way up.
"That is my first sit on her actually, but she is such a nice mare," Schiller said.
"She has a great demeanour, great attitude. For her to relax like that over a sprint trip and quicken like she did, I thought she has got a lot of merit in her win.
"She has got a lot of upside."
Murphy's mare shows Sass in Highway
A Country Championships berth is the long-term aim for the Pat Murphy-trained Sass 'N' Cheek, who has kicked off her latest campaign with a gutsy Highway Handicap (1200m) win.
It was a fourth career victory for the mare, but Murphy feels her record could read much better with an ounce of luck.
"If you dissect her form, even in the Highways and in nearly every run, there's just little things that have gone against her that have cost her being a class six horse already," Murphy said.
"I was very happy with the horse coming into the race. She is a horse that doesn't help herself in the run, she is very competitive.
"I wanted her to be a pair further back than she was so the last little bit I couldn't really watch because I knew she'd be coming up for air."
Sass 'N' Cheek ($18) hit the front near the 200m for Rachel King and clung on to outlast Zelgaria ($4.20 fav) by a half-length with Sunchyme ($10) another half-head further back.
Murphy is hoping she can continue her trajectory as she heads towards next year's Country Championships.
"I've got her pencilled in for the Country Championships," he said.
"I know she is going to try her guts out and her rating is up, so I just need to get her there in good order again."
Moreira lands double at final meeting
Joao Moreira has ended his latest Australian stint with a winning double for trainer Chris Waller, partnering up-and-coming stayer Kadavar to success in the TAB Handicap (2400m) before backing it up with victory aboard Modesty in the James Squire Handicap (1800m).
The South American-born Moreira has been dividing his time between his homeland, Japan and Australia over the past few months but with the spring carnival drawing to a close, will head home to his family in Brazil following the Rosehill meeting.
"He flies out tonight, back to Brazil," Waller's assistant trainer Charlie Duckworth said.
"He's had a good time of things over here."
Duckworth confirmed Moreira did plan to return to Sydney in the future and the top-class hoop remained hopeful of convincing his wife, Taciana and his young family, to make the move more permanently.
"He will come back but it's just how long we can get him to stay for is the hard part," Duckworth said.
"His wife is pretty adamant about staying in Brazil. He is going to bring her out, I think, for the next stint so she can at least see Sydney."
Moreira captured his major aboard Buckaroo in the Underwood Stakes (2000m) at Caulfield in September before steering the same horse to runner-up finishes in the Turnbull Stakes (2000m) and Caulfield Cup (2400m).
He made the most of Kadavar's rails draw on Saturday, settling him midfield and pinching runs along the inside before switching around the heels of the leader to beat the closing California Grass by a length.
A race later, Moreira brought import Modesty down the outside with a well-timed run to edge out Soldier Of Rome.
"When we get good rides, horses make our lives so much easier," Moreira said.
"I'm very happy to be winning on another one."
Quote of the Day: "I feel like, if she could run for Prime Minister she would, because she's a good dictator." Jockey Tyler Schiller on Hot Danish Stakes winner Belclare.
