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By Ray Hickson

Trainer Michael Freedman has long said Mumbai Muse would be a major player in the autumn, even before she notched successive stakes wins last spring, and on the evidence of her first appearance for 2024 the filly will be just that.

Freedman would have left Monday’s Randwick trials feeling pretty good about things in general as the likes of Blanc De Blanc, Queen Of The Hill, Hip Hip Hurrah, Manaal and Moravia all produced pleasing work.

You don’t generally beat the flying Malkovich in barrier trials and that wasn’t the case in the opening 850m heat but Mumbai Muse trialled strongly in behind him and edged within a length before Tommy Berry put the brakes on.

You’d imagine the Group 1 Surround Stakes (1400m) is on the agenda for Mumbai Muse. That could also be Blanc De Blanc’s target and she wasn’t disgraced in running third in the trial after tracking wide throughout.

It was her second trial back, since she last raced in the Golden Slipper, she’s a filly who hasn’t had a lot of luck with barrier draws in her career and it’ll be interesting to see how she comes up under race conditions.

Queen Of The Ball led in a Freedman trifecta in the following heat, run about four lengths slower, and we know her level but the same can’t be said for Hip Hip Hurrah and Moravia.

The former is unbeaten after two starts, winning the Listed Woodlands Stakes at Scone in May, while the latter was exposed to the best three-year-olds in the spring and stood up well with a close up finish in the Group 1 Golden Rose. He does appear to have returned nicely.

Quick note on Everest placegetter Private Eye who went around in the same heat – he jumped well then was taken back and virtually had an exhibition gallop at the back of the field. We’ll see more of him in a future trial.

There’s no stopping the Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott two-year-olds and while the unbeaten Shangri La Express was beaten by stablemate Prost in their clash if his first prep was any guide little attention should be paid to it.

Queen Of The Ball, trained by @MFreedmanRacing, wins a trial at Kensington on Monday, beating stablemate Hip Hip Hurrah and Moravia closed off strongly into third. #TABEverest placegetter Private Eye had a quiet trial. @tabcomau pic.twitter.com/4zmBt1pdO7

— Racing NSW (@racing_nsw) January 21, 2024

The Golden Gift winner didn’t jump the best but railed through to lead then travelled okay before being niggled at as Prost, under some riding at his second trial, picked him up. They just pipped Malkovich’s heat for the fastest of the morning.

There was a wall behind the first two including Freedman's Gimcrack Stakes winner Manaal and the Waterhouse/Bott Breeders' Plate winner Espionage.

Peter and Paul Snowden have taken a different approach with their two-year-olds this season and Peter Snowden said what was on show at Randwick forms the bulk of the stable’s A-Team.

For the second time in this prep, Bodyguard was run down by stablemate Fearless in a 1050m trial, another stablemate Wave Breaker ran third, but Snowden still has the former on top.

“(Bodyguard) got a bit keen, I put winkers on him because he was a bit relaxed at Canterbury the other day,’’ Snowden said.

“With the winkers on he travelled a bit keener than he normally does and it just took a little of the finish away from him that I know he has.

“He might be a horse that gets back midfield rather than be on speed but you know he’s going to deliver when you ask him to quicken up.

“Fearless is a nice horse in his own right. We wanted to see what he was like riding him quieter and I think that’s the best way to ride him, his closing sectionals were good and he’ll be ridden that way in future.”

The Snowdens also produced a trifecta when Counteroffensive easily accounted for Zealously and Manos in slightly slower time for the 1050m.

A few other horses to note, perhaps in lesser grade to start with, include Rhythm Of Love who was nice late running second to Introducing; Rock Empire hit the line well behind Godfather, he won a maiden on debut before being deep ended; and blueblood The Hawkesbury stretched out okay in a quiet trial finishing midfield.

It’ll be interesting to see what Waterhouse/Bott youngsters Alinea and Lady Of Camelot produce when they go to the races. Both have won two short trials in recent weeks and both held good margins, running similar times.

They ran fifth and fourth respectively in the Gimcrack Stakes at their only starts.

All the results and replays from Monday's Randwick trials