Craig Kerry
Will Freedman knew early on filly Jenni In Rome might prove hard to handle.
“When we bought her from New Zealand, she refused to load on to the flight,” Freedman said of his Golden Gift hope.
“It took three goes to get her onto the flight, so she’s got a bit of stubbornness in her.
“At one point, we were worrying that we may have to train her remotely from Australia. Fortunately, they figured out how to get her on.”
Freedman hopes an encouraging debut run in the Kirkham Plate (1000m) and pleasing work since can produce a Golden Slipper-qualifying performance in the listed $1 million Golden Gift (1100m) on Saturday at Rosehill.
Jenni In Rome, a $130,000 buy for Freedman and co-trainer and father Richard at the Karaka Book 2 Sale in New Zealand, raced keenly midfield in the Kirkham before hitting the front inside the final furlong. Chris Waller-trained Exo Velocity, with a rails run from last, pounced late to win. Waller stablemate Tour De Force also finished stronger, taking second spot as Jenni In Rome finished half a length off the winner.
Freedman hoped for improvement from the Sword Of State filly, which carries the colours of Tony Ottobre made famous by Pride Of Jenni.
“I thought she’d probably needed the run a little bit,” Freedman said.
“You don’t really know when you’re stepping out two-year-olds for the first time, how much work they can handle.
“She had a good blow after the race, and I feel like she’s really come on from that.
“I thought she sprinted well, and she probably got a little bit lost out in front on her own first time, which is understandable.
“She seems to have trained on nicely enough, but, again, you’re not really asking too much of these pre-Christmas two-year-olds between runs, so it still feels like a little bit of unknown territory about how much benefit she took out of it.
“The plan was always to get his second up. Realistically, if you run in the top two in the Golden Gift, you usually qualify for the Slipper.
“You never really know when these two-year-olds are going to train off, and that’s obviously a point of anxiety, but she seems to have come through the run pretty well.”
The Golden Gift offers first prize of $580,000, and the runner-up a cheque of $190,000, putting the quinella effectively into the $5 million Slipper in March on prizemoney won.
Freedman has worked on Jenni In Rome’s racing manners since the first-up effort. She faces a difficult task on Saturday after drawing what should be gate 13 of 14. Jason Collett rides the $9.50 chance.
“She raced a little bit fresh, which probably links in with her needing to run a little bit as well,” he said.
“But she worked on the course proper on Monday and settled nicely behind an older horse.
“I thought the horse that ran second in that race probably was the one to beat, so it was a pleasant surprise seeing him not go there, but she looks like a pre-Christmas two-year-old, so we’re utilising that now.
“She’d been beautifully broken in by Kit Brooks, and since she got to Australia, she’s been bomb -proof, so she’s handled the workload well, but she’s got to do it again.”
Exo Velocity was a $5 favourite from gate seven.
Hawkes turns to blinkers for colt
Co-trainer Michael Hawkes hopes the addition of blinkers can get Royal Accord back on track in the Golden Gift.
The $300,000 Home Affairs colt was favourite on debut in the Kirkham after two trial wins, and he had every chance in the run but finished seventh. He was dealt a further blow with a draw in 12, likely to be 10, in the Golden Gift.
“The run was disappointing,” Hawkes said of the $9.50 hope.
“He showed so much in his trials, and then got to race day and just didn’t perform.
“He pulled up great, everything’s fine. He’ll race Saturday with blinkers on. He worked well in them [Tuesday morning], so I can’t fault him.”
The Hawkes stable also has Torshavn ($10), a $325,000 Maurice colt, in the race. He debuts off a trial win and has gate one.
“He’s a lovely horse and he’s going to be a better horse next prep,” Hawkes said.
“He’s going to be a better three-year-old, but his trials have been good. The 1100m will suit.
“He’s a really nice colt in the making, and hopefully he can put it all together. He’s still not there yet. Ability wise, he’s got it, but he’s still learning what it’s all about. But he’s earned his stripes to be in a race like this.”
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