Latest News

Trainer Kris Lees is looking to win his first hometown $1 million The Hunter (1300m) at Newcastle next Saturday.

Lees intends starting both Never Talk and Gem Song in the spring feature to be run for only the fourth occasion.

Lees has finished second with Tactical Advantage (2019), Special Reward (2020) and Wandabaa last year in each of the three runnings of The Hunter so far.

Never Talk scores for Sam Clipperton on the Randwick Kensington Track. Image by Steve Hart Photographics

Never Talk is in brilliant form coming off placings in successive Royal Randwick runs before finishing a close fifth to Promise Of Success there last time out in the $2m The Invitation (1400m) for fillies and mares on October 22.

Gem Song also wasn’t beaten far when seventh (beaten just under two lengths) to Rocketing By in the $2m Sydney Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on October 15 at his first run since being placed in both the Listed Ramornie Handicap (1200m) at Grafton in July and Group 2 Missile Stakes (1200m) at Randwick in early August.

Meanwhile, inaugural The Big Dance winner Rustic Steel won’t be chasing another $2m purse at Rosehill Gardens tomorrow.

Lees has pulled the pin on a quick back-up for the five-year-old in the Five Diamonds (1500m) following his victory in last Tuesday’s 1600m feature at Royal Randwick, boosting his earnings to nearly $1.7m with eight wins from 17 starts.

The Big Dance success followed earlier victories this year also at 1600m in the $500,000 The Coast at Gosford and $200,000 Listed Scone Cup.

Rustic Steel’s Big Dance triumph came exactly two years after he made a winning debut at the same Randwick meeting, in a 3YO Maiden Plate (1100m).

“Rustic Steel is fine, but I’ve decided to back off for a few days and not run him tomorrow,” Lees said from Melbourne this morning.

“But he may start next in the $1m The Gong at his specialist 1600m trip at Kembla Grange in a fortnight.”

Lees has returned pregnant mare Enchanted Heart to Newcastle after she was kicked behind the barrier by another horse and couldn’t run in the closer at Flemington last Saturday.

“She is fine, and will probably have two more runs in Sydney before being retired,” he said.