Author: Editor BOAY

Kirkland (NZ) (Highly Recommended) won’t lack for fitness heading into Friday’s Lowe Schollum Jones Handicap (2060m) at Wanganui. Trainer Alexander Fieldes has Kirkland earmarked for a jumping career and has given the Highly Recommended five-year-old three outings at point-to-point jumping fixtures as well as a fresh-up flat run at Wanganui last month. Ridden by Sam O’Malley that day, Kirkland finished well for third, beaten less than three lengths, and he has the opportunity to improve on that performance in Friday’s Rating 93 highweight event. “He went pretty well here the…

Two-time AFL premiership winning coach Denis Pagan has made a successful transition to training racehorses claiming his first winner at Sandown. Pagan, 72, coached North Melbourne to flag success in 1996 and 1999 and has always had a long-term love of the thoroughbred. It was through his association with Flemington trainer Troy Corstens that the spark was lit to try his hand at training horses. Pagan, who prepared his first runner on July 4 after being granted his licence just days earlier, had his fourth starter Frankie Two Angels (Medaglia…

Cranbourne trainer Francis Finnegan is confident Kiwi import Lord Bouzeron can again foot it with some of the better late-season three-year-olds when he returns to Caulfield on Saturday. The son of Burgundy will contest the Mark Needham Handicap (2394m) a fortnight after winning impressively on Australian debut for Finnegan, having transferred from his sister-in-law Chrissy Bambry’s stable in New Zealand, for whom he won trials at Foxton and Otaki in June. The small but athletic gelding will again be ridden by three kilo-claiming apprentice Will Price, who notched his first…

There are limited opportunities remaining this season for NZB Insurance Pearl Series registered fillies and mares to secure Pearl bonuses, as well as the one-off incentive for second-placegetters running until the end of July. The first of three NZB Insurance Pearl Series races take place on Friday, with a Maiden 1200m event at Wanganui, where six Pearl registered fillies and mares have been accepted among a mixed sex field of 11 runners. Avondale’s meeting on Saturday will include the running of a Maiden 1400m race at 3.20pm. There are six…

The Stephen McKee-trained Make Time (NZ) (Makfi) broke maiden ranks on Wednesday with a comfortable victory at Avondale in testing conditions. The three-year-old gelding, who races in the Go Racing silks for the Penrhyn Syndicate, had been building up to the win running third in each of his three previous starts before racing was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “We had to ease off him because of lockdown,” McKee said. “He did have that fitness edge and I was pretty sure he would go alright I just…

Due to further significant rain at Pukekohe Park over the last 24 hours, and the impact this has had on the track, this Saturday’s Counties meeting has been transferred to Avondale. Distances and times remain the same. The rail will be moved out (distance tbc) after racing there on Wednesday.

Shane Crawford has spent a large portion of his working life overseas in various racing jurisdictions, but the Cambridge trainer is pleased to be based in his homeland with the COVID-19 pandemic currently wreaking havoc around the world. Crawford has been training in New Zealand for the last decade, but prior to that the Waikato horseman was jetting around the world, learning from the best trainers and laying the groundwork for his current business. “I have been in racing all of my life,” Crawford said. “My grandfather, Norm Crawford, trained…