by Ken Casellas
New South Wales-bred filly Miss Sangrial is continuing to improve and she has excellent prospects of levelling the score when she clashes with the brilliant Cott Beach in the Westside Auto Wholesale Western Crown Classic for two-year-old fillies at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
These two fillies have met three times, with Cott Beach holding sway, finishing ahead of Miss Sangrial in their first two clashes before she started at 5/1 on and finished fourth behind 5/1 chance Miss Sangrial in the de Campo Memorial for fillies at Bunbury’s Donaldson Park last Saturday night.
A more favourable barrier (No. 4 on the front line) could give Miss Sangrial a telling advantage over Cott Beach, who will start out wide at No. 7 and is expected to be a firm favourite.
Miss Sangrial, trained at Blythewood by Michael Brennan and driven by his nephew Michael Grantham, began speedily from the No. 5 barrier last Saturday night and got to the front after only 40m before setting the pace and winning by a length from Captured Delight, with final quarters of 27.5sec. and 28.3sec.
Cott Beach, trained at Blythewood by Gary Elson and driven by Nathan Turvey, settled down in seventh position in the one-wide line before Turvey sent her forward, four wide, at the bell. Cott Beach moved into the breeze at the 600m mark before wilting to finish fourth.
Turvey explained to the stewards that Cott Beach had become agitated due to a false start and that he had difficulty in getting her to relax in the early stages. She pulled hard and was inclined to hang in.
Cott Beach was an impressive winner of the $50,000 Champagne Classic over 2130m at Gloucester Park at her previous outing, last Friday week. She started from the outside barrier (No. 9) and was ninth at the bell before finishing powerfully to hit the front 100m from the post and winning at a 1.59.6 rate from Miss Sangrial, a 33/1 chance who ran home solidly from sixth on the pegs at the bell.
At her two previous starts, Cott Beach revealed sparkling gate speed from wide barriers (seven and six) to lead and win at Pinjarra and Gloucester Park when she was widely touted as the likely winner of the $100,000 Diamond Classic for two-year-old fillies at Gloucester Park on June 2.
Adding considerable interest to Friday night’s race will be the first appearance in Australia of Millwood Poly, a half-sister to star pacer Ohoka Punter, who has amassed $986,936 from 25 wins and 22 placings from 55 starts.
Millwood Poly, trained at Busselton by Barry Howlett, will be driven by master reinsman Chris Lewis. She is the only runner on the second line in the field of ten. She has raced only once, in a heat of the Young Guns classic for two-year-old fillies at Alexandra Park on February 10 when she started from barrier six and settled at the rear in the field of nine.
She moved forward to be third, out three wide, at the bell and continued to race three wide without cover for the final circuit before fading in the closing stages to finish last.
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