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Eagle Farm trainer Desleigh Forster will have the Queensland handicapping panel to thank if her former New Zealand mare, Poste Restante, wins today's $80,0000 Carlton Mid Port Macquarie Cup.
Photo by Racing and Sports
Forster also nominated the mare for a race over 2030 metres at Doomben on Saturday in which she received equal top weight of 59kg while she has only 55kg in the Port Cup.
“The Port Cup has been in the back of my mind for a while and when I saw the weight we had at Doomben compared to the weight we have in the cup my mind was made up for me,” Forster said.
“I decided to head south. The distance suits her and the prize money is much better.”
Poste Restante comes into the Cup with three runs behind her, over shorter distances, since a spell and brings a touch of class to the field with two placings at Group level.
“She is ready to step back up to 2000 metres now, it is the distance she is most effective at,” Forster said.
“She will get well back but she has a powerful finish and provided there is good speed on I think she will be hard to beat.”
Poste Restante was originally trained in New Zealand and won two races there before finishing fourth in last year’s Group One New Zealand Oaks and second in the Group Three Manawatu Classic at Awapuni.
After that she was sent to Queensland for the winter carnival and stabled with Forster, running third in the Group Three Rough Habit (2000m) at Doomben.
“After the carnival the owners decided to leave her with me,” Forster said.
Since then Poste Restante has won another four races, one at Doomben and three at Eagle Farm.
Forster has cautioned against taking too much notice of the mare’s three runs since resuming.
“They have all been good runs over unsuitable distances and her last run, when fourth at Doomben, was a beauty,” Forster said.
“She probably should have won but Michael Cahill was a victim of circumstances and got trapped at a vital stage.”
Terry Treichel will ride Poste Restante for the first time in the cup.
“Terry is a good rider but more importantly he knows the track and that will be a big plus,” Forster said.
