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By Ray Hickson

If Joe Pride could hand pick a horse to take into Saturday’s TAB Epsom he’d choose his talented four-year-old Private Eye every day of the week.

Trainer Joe Pride (Pic: Bradley Photos)

To his eye, the gelding has had the perfect build up for the first of his two spring targets and couldn’t have picked a better barrier for himself if he was able.

So he says he has every right to be confident Private Eye, $8 with TAB on Wednesday, has a serious chance in the Group 1 $1.5m TAB Epsom (1600m) at Randwick.

“I think he is super genuine, he has Randwick mile written all over him for mine,’’ Pride said.

“To me he is the perfect horse to be taking into an Epsom. Without a win in those middle two runs I’ve seen everything I needed to see from him that tells me he’s on track.

“I’m really happy that I’ve given him three runs. He’s a casual horse back home and he needed those runs to get him fit enough to run a big race in a Randwick mile.”

Private Eye signalled he would be a live Epsom chance with a fast-finishing Group 3 Show County (1200m) win in August but he was unplaced in the Theo Marks and Bill Ritchie.

As Pride alluded, those unplaced runs don’t concern him. The latter was his first start in blinkers and he found himself sitting wide in a midfield position but he stuck on to run fourth behind Atishu over the 1400m.

He’ll meet Atishu 2.5kg better for a length and a half defeat.

“I love seeing horses run well fresh, it tells me they are in for a big prep,’’ Pride said.

“I don’t need to make excuses for him but I can give you compelling reasons why he was beaten. They aren’t things that bother me going forward, they are circumstantial reasons that aren’t going to affect him on Saturday.”

The Warwick Farm trainer has won Doncasters but he’s yet to win an Epsom and if Private Eye is to be his first he’ll be doing it with that trademark burst of speed he’s shown in his most of his wins.

“One of his limitations as a horse is his racing pattern. He is a get back horse,’’ he said.

“Last start, while it wasn’t a change of tactics, it showed he can’t be ridden out of his comfort zone.

“He’s second half of the field and will probably be off the bit at some point chasing, that’s customary for him, I’m just looking forward to seeing him in a high pressure race which he hasn’t had this preparation.”

All being well Private Eye will head to the $7.5m Golden Eagle (1500m) at Rosehill on October 30.

It’s shaping as a big weekend in the Pride household with Private Eye chasing a Group 1 and his NRL team South Sydney in Sunday’s Grand Final. He’d love to have both but if he had to choose?

Private Eye runs fourth in the Bill Ritchie on September 18

“I love my footy but I wouldn’t be swapping a Grand Final for an Epsom,’’ Pride said.

Stablemate Taksu isn’t far off another win on his current form and steps up in trip in the TAB Handicap (1600m) two weeks after having victory snatched from him by High Supremacy over 1400m.

Pride said from a handy draw he’d expect Taksu to be very competitive.

“It took an absolute Nash Rawiller 10/10 ride to knock him off,’’ Pride said.

“He’s a good honest horse and has been racing really well. I’m looking forward to seeing him at the mile, I think it would suit him.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday's TAB Epsom meeting at Randwick