Furphy - Railway Stakes (Group 1 Handicap)

THE Perth Summer carnival got underway last Saturday with the running of the A$1.5 million Group 1 Railway Stakes under handicap conditions over 1,600 metres at Ascot.

Trainer Neville Parnham and his son, jockey Steven Parnham, had their confidence up having combined to take out the previous, the Group 2 West Australian Guineas with the Playing God gelding Zipaway, and one starter in the Railway’s 16-horse field was all they required.

Saddling up the $9 chance Bustler, also by Playing God, Steven Parnham, from mid-field, got into the clear running around the final bend to let the four-year-old unwind. Hitting the lead with 150 metres to run, Bustler broke the race apart, winning by a length from the Star Turn mare Alsephina and the Shooting To Win gelding Dom To Shoot.

Best days

“It’s obviously right up there with one of the best days I’ve had,” said Neville Parnham, one of Perth’s leading trainers.

“The Railway Stakes has eluded me so far in my 40-year career, it’s just one race I wanted to tick off. I think it’s one of our most prestigious, if not, the most prestigious race.

“I thought I had a really genuine chance of winning the race, I just felt that there were a couple of aspects of other runners that I thought we might be able to have the edge on today.

“Steve pulled out an 11 out of 10 ride and was able to get him into that moving line and pounce when he wanted to.”

Bates charts a Cup win

DECLAN Bates continued his big race winning ways taking out the feature $500,000 Listed Cranbourne Cup on Saturday over 1,600 metres.

Riding the British-bred Charming Thought gelding Charterhouse for Ciaron Maher and David Eustace, Bates peeled off the back of the race favourite Foxy Cleopatra at the top of the straight, eight lengths from the lead.

Charterhouse kept building into his task, eventually overwhelming his rivals to hit the front 20 metres out, landing his first win in five Australian starts.

“He’s got a magnificent clock, a great set of hands and he’s very mature at letting the race develop, he doesn’t rush,” said stable foreman Jack Turnbull of Bates’ ride.

“He works hard, and he’s probably had the best spring he’s ever had and thankfully it’s been on our horses.”

Formerly trained out of Upton by John Murphy, Charterhouse, last year’s Listed Ruby Stakes winner at Killarney, was bought for 130,000 Guineas at the 2022 Tattersalls Autumn Horses In Training Sale.

Madden strikes gold with Glitter

TOM ‘Socks’ Madden has claimed his second country cup of the season, when pulling out an eyecatching win in the $30k Penshurst Cup aboard the Lindsey Smith-trained Glitter ‘N’ Gold.

Last month, Madden won the St Arnaud Cup on Riotous Mischief. Saturday’s effort gained him more praise as Glitter ‘N’ Gold had not won since March, and stood still when the gates opened, forcing Madden to shake the reins and the whip to get him moving.

Race reports noted the combination was still five lengths away from the rest of the field as they crossed the line for the first time.

With half a mile to run favourite Wetakemanhatten and Valley Forge began to ramp things up and Valley Forge led into the straight, as Wetakemanhatten tired.

Madden had started a run aboard his mount, and surged into the race around the bend, and taking an extremely tight gap to find clear air in the final stretch.

Valley Forge fought on but Madden and Glitter ‘N’ Gold were finishing too strongly and dashed clear late.

The win was part of a Madden’s double on the day, scoring earlier for another Warrnambool trainer, Tom Dabernig, aboard three-year-old filly Brain Fog.

THE five-year-old Jakkalberry gelding Detonator Jack landed the biggest win of his 15-start career taking out Saturday’s A$1 million Illawarra Mercury Gong over 1,600 metres at Kembla Grange.

Trained by Ciaron Maher and David Eustace, Detonator Jack was wide on the turn before accelerating away from his rivals to post a facile three-length win over the Lonhro gelding Loch Eagle and the Pierro colt Osipenko.

“We were in a lovely spot, and I think the blinkers definitely helped him today,” said jockey Jason Collett.

“When I needed him to be there, he was there. The softer ground was probably a bit of an advantage too. It’s a long straight, but he’s a powerful horse and he had enough left in the tank. That acceleration would have looked pretty impressive, and it felt good too.”

A winner now of six from 15, Detonator Jack will return to Melbourne for his home-town Cup on December 9th.

“This horse has always threatened to win a big one, and he’s gone pretty close in his last couple,” said Ciaron Maher referencing Detonator Jack third placing in the $2 million FIve Diamonds two weeks earlier.

“I think we’ll go to the (Listed) Ballarat Cup (2,000 metres) in a couple of weeks. A lot of the owners are Ballarat locals, so hopefully he can carry on this form there. But it was an unbelievable effort today.”

New Zealand

NEW Zealand Bloodstock held their two-day 2023 Ready-To-Run sale at Karaka last week with Hong Kong buyers the dominant players, spending NZ$16.7 million for 70 horses, at an average of $238,771, including the four top lots.

The sale smashed records, recording a gross of $35,107,000 having averaged $156,000 for 225 horses sold at the clearance rate of 73% at a median of $90,000.

“I’m gobsmacked, these results are just unheard of,” said NZB’s Andrew Seabrook. “I’ve never seen so many Hong Kong trainers here, and great they had their owners here which made a huge difference.

A great way to finish today and no doubt it will give everyone confidence going into the (2024) yearling sales.”

With Karaka Ready-To-Run graduates headlined by star Hong Kong gallopers Golden Sixty (a $300,000 purchase) and Lucky Sweynesse ($90,000) the interest was not unexpected.

“What New Zealand horses do in Hong Kong is remarkable and to have two of the best horses in the world racing there and having come out of this sale is something we are very proud of,” added Seabrook.

The top lot, a Star Turn colt out of the Foxwedge mare Commonwealth, went for a sales record of $825,000 to the Hong Kong-based Mr Pato Leung.

Colts by Harry Angel, Deep Field and Written Tycoon went for $800,000, $750,000 and $700,000 respectively while a gelding by All Too Hard made $800,000, with the top filly, by Super Seth, selling for $700,000.