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By Ray Hickson

Trainer Kristen Buchanan maintains promising grey Oakfield Duke will stretch his brilliance beyond a short course in the future but is keeping him to what he knows for his return at Randwick on Saturday.

Trainer Kristen Buchanan (Pic: Bradley Photos).

The four-year-old won four straight at 1000m and 1100m between June and September and that prompted Buchanan to test the waters for a possible start in the $500,000 Four Pillars (1500m).

That winning run came to an end in a 1300m event at Rosehill in late September and the Wyong trainer took it as a lesson learned for now and hopes Oakfield Duke can make a lie of that performance in the Midway Handicap (1100m).

“I highly rate the horse and the Four Pillars was coming up and we had to find out if he can settle enough and run out 1500m,’’ she said.

“His last start was a little bit below par but when they put a picket fence together your expectations keep growing. But he’d had a big prep. Maybe the 1300m didn’t suit, maybe he’d had enough, who knows.

“The way he hits the line it’s not out of the question that he might (run it). I wouldn’t rule it out in the long run but at that stage of his prep it didn’t work for him.”

Buchanan is adamant there’s more to come from Oakfield Duke who only started his career back in early June, having been brought along slowly as is the norm for owner Bruce Mackenzie’s horses.

“They come to us as late two-year-olds/early three-year-olds and it still takes a year to give them education and that slows the process down,’’ she said.

“But you have a lovely, sound, robust horse to work with. I love his system but it does put us behind the eight ball.

“I think he is a horse that has the potential to race at Saturday grade and hopefully beyond.

“But he’s got to keep improving, I feel that scope is there and I think the speed on at the shorter courses is a better scenario for him.

“We don’t have any specific race goals other than we’d love to win the Midway on Saturday then his benchmark will take him into open company.”

Oakfield Duke, $4.80 with TAB on Thursday, had four weeks at Mackenzie’s property following his Rosehill failure and appeared to easily win a trial on his home track on December 16.

It was a trial that Buchanan said couldn’t have panned out any better for the grey as he stalked the leader and ran on by in the straight for a soft victory which she hopes sets him up well for his first-up assignment.

“He loves reeling them in, he’s very competitive,’’ she said.

“He’s a fun little horse to ride and he would have enjoyed that very much. That’s ideal for him.

“I’d love to take that step to metropolitan grade and keep progressing from there.

“At the 1100m there’ll be enough speed, we can get a little bit of cover from a nice gate and let him hit the line. He’s carrying 60kg after racing modest company so now he has to show he is up to it.”

Oakfield Duke wins a trial at Wyong on December 16

Meanwhile, Four Pillars winner Oakfield Arrow will be set for a first-up run in one of the Provincial-Midway Championships qualifiers.

The mare’s biggest win was her fifth at her 20th start so that means she can’t race before the Championships and Buchanan has to get the preparation right.

“I’ll be fussy. We’ve got to finish one-two. She’ll have two or three trials leading into it and have everything ready to go,’’ she said.

“She’s pretty versatile and I think that’s why she’s been so good. She can go forward, or sit back off a good tempo.

“She can go on wet tracks and dry tracks and they are the horses you want in these race series. You put so much into targeting them and you want to know you’ve got as many bases covered as possible.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday’s Randwick meeting