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By Doug Ryan

Port Macquarie connections reckon a win by gelding Speed With Ease (an emergency) in the 34th Lasiandra Cup at Wauchope’s community meeting on Saturday would be some consolation for the galloper being checked and hampered by a riderless horse at Port’s last meeting.

The four-year-old gelding’s trainer Tom Higgins felt the incident cost his galloper five or six lengths whereas jockey Robert Agnew said he went up in the irons and “was lucky to stay on". “My horse gets back in the run and comes home well but I copped it on the fence,” Agnew said.

Speed With Ease prior had finished a five-length eighth at Kempsey over 1450m and fourth over 1615m at Coffs Harbour, the horse having won two races and been placed five times. The field has plenty of mixed form and is hard to line up from different districts but it should be a most entertaining race.

Grafton trainer Jason Reilly was looking at a race at home on Monday for six-year-old gelding Classroom Destiny but has decided to run in the cup and has the services of Wauchope jockey Belinda Hodder who knows the track well.

He said his horse “should run a big race” following its second over 1516m in soft ground at Lismore, only its fourth run back since having a virus and suffering an injury last campaign.

Six-year-old Taree mare Caught The Katy, trained by Karen Owen, has had only eight starts but has been set for this race after scoring over the distance at the track on Boxing Day. She said the mare was slow away when resuming over 1450m behind Sanjay at Kempsey on May 12 and is taking advantage of apprentice jockey Olivia Pickering’s 2kg claim.

Wauchope trainer Michael O‘Neill, most known for his deeds with Xerxes Dream which was retired with 10 wins after the Woop Woop Cup at Wauchope on Boxing Day, has Mosh Pit engaged and is hoping track advantage comes to the fore after its sixth to Loud Enough over 1900m at Kempsey on May 12.

Newcastle gelding More Than Aholiday, trained by Mick Dwyer, has won six races from 1200m to 2200m and possesses a good turn of foot, being capable of leading all the way whereas Taree mare Mosgiel Lucy, trained by Matthew Robinson, is classy but is on trial at the distance.

Last year’s winner six-year-old gelding Prince Coureuse, trained at Taree by Tess Wilkes, is fit but all its racing has been over longer distances of late but it showed it can adapt in scoring by 5.5 lengths but the field then was not as strong.

SELECTIONS
RACE 1: Conquering Kate 1, Sunsout Shirtsoff 2, Dr Mayhem 3.
RACE 2: Ayla’s Angel 1, Robylucy 2, Aqualung 3.
RACE 3: Hellyer’s Road 1, Leica Kite 2, True Zippo 3.
RACE 4: Classroom Destiny 1, More Than Aholiday 2, Speed With Ease (em) or Mosgiel Lucy 3.
RACE 5: Kaleb Will Do 1, Thunder Cove 3, Private Valentine 3.

View the final fields with full form & race replays for Wauchope here