Trainer Mitch Beer will take a heavy-handed approach on home turf at Kembla Grange with promising filly Lightly Sparkled ($7 on TAB) among his leading contenders on Saturday.
Beer has seven runners across five races across the eight-event card and is quietly confident of coming away with a result.
The return of Lightly Sparkled has the stakes-winning conditioner most excited as the daughter of Headwater prepares to have her second race start in the Jansz Rose Garden Midway Maiden Plate (1000m).
Beer thought enough of Lightly Sparkled to take her to town for her first start at Randwick's Kensington Track in July where the filly finished fourth. She has won an 800m trial in the lead up to her return.
“Her trial the other day at Hawkesbury was really good and I think she will be hard to beat,” Beer said.
“We brought her as a yearling and we only gave her the one run last preparation on the Kenso before we tipped her out.
“But she has come back quite good and should be hard to beat.”
Beer forked out $30,000 to buy Lightly Sparkled as a yearling and she could prove to be a bargain buy for the trainer. She is a $7 chance on TAB to break her maiden at the second time of asking with Blake Spriggs aboard.
Spriggs and Beer could be in for a big day together with the jockey set to pilot four of the trainer’s best chances across the card.
Beer believes Scissor Me Timbers ($12) is ready to run a big race in the Amyzee Hair Cg&e Class 1 Handicap (1200m) while Brazil ($2.90 favourite) will kick off the day in The Gong Next Saturday Class 1 Handicap (1500m).
Beer elected to scratch Brazil from Saturday’s Midway event at Newcastle in order to line up while stablemate Canadian Express ($7) lined up a day earlier at Gundagai. Brazil was a winner two starts ago before a luckless run at Newcastle.
“Brazil was in the Midway and he was a tragedy beaten last start there at Newcastle,” Beer said. “It was painful but the horse is going great.”
Spriggs also rides Your Not The Boss ($6), which is one of three Beer runners in the JJJ Racing Provincial Bm64 Handicap (1400m) with Desert Voice ($19) and Cream Rises ($14).
Beer will use Mitch Stableford’s 3kg when Sunrise ($7) contests the JM Horse Transport F&m Class 1 Handicap (1200m).
View final fields with full form & race replays for Kembla Grange here