Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott have their sights set on the opening Group One of the season with a pair of talented mares, both of which appeared at the Taupo trials on Monday.
The first to step out on the soft surface was Grail Seeker, a multiple Group One winner of the Tarzino Trophy (1400m) and Telegraph (1200m) last term. The mare was making her first appearance since finishing near the tail of the field in the Gr.1 All Aged Stakes (1400m) in April, but looked right back in the groove in her Open 900m heat.
“We’re really happy with her,” O’Sullivan said. “She wasn’t asked to do much, but her action was good, she’s pulled up sound and well, so we’re very pleased.”
Grail Seeker is on track towards defending her Tarzino (now Proisir Plate) crown, where she may be partnered by Bruno Queiroz, who has made an impact on the riding ranks since arriving in New Zealand in the autumn.
“We had Bruno Queiroz on her today, who we’re hoping will ride her in the Group One,” Scott said.
“He got familiar with her and she settled nicely for him, she was only out there for a canter so we were pleased with how willing she was.”
The daughter of Iffraaj accumulated more than $500,000 in earnings in just four starts last term, but Scott indicated she is likely to have a busier schedule in her five-year-old season.
“All roads lead to the first one at this stage, we’ll look to trial her again on the 17th or the 26th (of August), depending on the weather,” he said. “From there, we’ll get through the Proisir Plate on the 6th (of September), and we are looking to get a little more racing into her this season than she did last year.
“In saying that, she’s going to show us the way.”
Another lightly-raced mare in Tomodachi is heading for her elite-level debut in the Proisir Plate, having won three of her four starts including the Gr.3 Rotorua ITM Stakes (1400m) last term as a four-year-old.
The exciting Tarzino mare was full of running in her 900m trial, which O’Sullivan expects she will take good improvement from.
“She’ll take good benefit from today’s outing, she was pretty keen through the run, but she was similar to that last campaign,” he said.
“She’s coming along well, so she’ll have another quiet trial and all going well, she’ll go into the Proisir Plate as well.”
The Matamata trainers hope to have a trio of contenders in the Ellerslie feature with Checkmate also in consideration, but are willing to take a more conservative approach with the gelding.
A stakes winner and placegetter in the $3.5 million NZB Kiwi (1500m), Checkmate pleased O’Sullivan and Scott with a strong resuming effort over 900m on Monday, but they are hoping to see further improvement condition-wise before heading to a big assignment such as the Proisir Plate.
“He’s coming up steadily, he was one of the horses looking further away in the coat today,” Scott said.
“His trial was very encouraging, Warren (Kennedy) rode him and he knows him well, and he thinks he’s got a little bit stronger. We’re ever hopeful, we’re just hoping he can improve a little more in coat and condition over the next three or four weeks before kicking him off.
“His next trial is going to tell us if he will be there in that first Group One of the season, that’s where we’ll look to kick him off as he has performed well around Ellerslie before.
“We’re really mindful of looking after him through the first half of the season, as we think he’ll certainly be stronger in the back half.”
Wexford was also represented later on by promising three-year-old Varjak, who defeated subsequent stakes winner Towering Vision in his sole juvenile outing in mid-April.
In the colours of JML Bloodstock, Varjak had a quiet outing in a competitive age-group trial, working well to the line under Masa Hashizume.
“We always planned to do so (have the one juvenile start), with the idea of hopefully coming up well enough to compete in those better three-year-old races,” O’Sullivan said.
“He was asked for nothing today, he went back to the tail of the field and remained there, but he was under a good hold and did a nice working gallop the whole way.
“He’s coming up well.”
An eye-catching performance came from one of their untapped members in Smart Love, who has had just three career starts for a win and two placings. The daughter of Savabeel stepped out against the likes of La Crique and Cannon Hill in her 900m heat and closed off strongly to come within 1-1/4 lengths of the former.
“She was only out there for a wee breeze around, but she was really kind on the rein and settled into her work well,” Scott said. “She came up underneath Masa (Hashizume) really well and she enjoyed the better ground.
“It was lovely to see all the horses out there on beautiful, yielding ground and they’ll all pull up well from it.
“She looks to be coming up well and will have another trial before we look to kick her off. She’s a bigger, stronger version this time around, she looks great.”
