Confident Dane Ready For Bowl
- Thursday, 08 July 2010 08:45
A confidence-boosting country win has laid the foundation for the Peter Snowden-trained three-year-old St Clement Danes to attack the Silver Bowl Final at Flemington.
The gelding was scratched from Bendigo on Thursday to contest Saturday's 1600m feature after his all-the-way win at Kyneton on June 22.
Two of his three wins in 10 starts have been on heavy ground and he ploughed his way through the mud last start to score an emphatic victory over 1479m by nearly three lengths.
"He is a bit of a confidence horse and we wanted to give him a win," Melbourne foreman Paul Snowden said.
Brent Stanley will ride St Clement Danes and Snowden believes he can be competitive against the higher-rated in-form gallopers Midnight Glory, who has won three of his last four starts, and the unbeaten Good Value.
"He handles the wet conditions which is a big plus," Snowden said.
"There are two good chances above him but he is a horse who races on the speed and makes his own luck so he is a show."
St Clement Danes should handle his first try at 1600 metres being a son of Shamardal and former top mare St. Clemens Belle who was a Group One winner of Perth's 1999 Fruit `N' Veg Stakes (1800m) and dead-heated in the Group Two Stutt Stakes (1600m) at Moonee Valley.
Ballarat trainer Darren Weir said Midnight Glory was paying for his consistency after he was allotted topweight of 58.5kg following wins at Sandown and Flemington at his last two starts over 1500m and 1700m respectively.
Both wins were on heavy tracks and both times he finished his races off strongly.
Good Value, from the Mick Kent yard, is yet to be beaten in three runs at Kilmore, Cranbourne and Echuca.
He drops three kilos to 55.5kg on his Echuca run and Glen Boss takes the reins after riding him to victory at Cranbourne two starts ago.
Picture: Colin Bull
