By Matt Markham
Mark Purdon wasn’t too worried, but the punters who have backed Heaven Rocks into short favouritism for Saturday 4YO Emerald might have been a little concerned about what transpired at the Ashburton Workouts on Saturday.
The $1.50 favourite for the $150,000 event on Saturday, was beaten by two of his three-year-old stablemates at the annual Jewels workouts on Saturday after leading for the last 1000 metres.
Back again too was the hitch in his gait that must make even the calmest of his fans nervous, but while to those watching on it didn’t look pretty, sitting behind him Mark Purdon wasn’t all that concerned.
“I still thought he went good, it was what he needed,” Purdon said.
“It’s my first drive of him for a while, so it was good to get a perspective on where he is at and I just felt he was reaching for his hopples a wee bit up the straight which would explain that rolling action he had going on.”
Heaven Rock’s was first collared by More The Better who had sat outside him from the 800 metre mark. And then the pair were both picked up late by Stars Align who had led early then trailed his stablemate.
“They are both really nice horses,” Purdon said.
“It’s a shame More The Better has drawn out wider than the others on Saturday because it will make it that much harder for him.”
The All Stars team also gave a big tick to two-year-old pacer, Ashley Locaz who won impressively earlier in proceedings while other Jewels contenders to impress on the day included Lady Chatto, Star Commander and The Black Prince.
But, If there was a statement to be made ahead of saturday’s Harness Jewels meeting, then Clint Ford made it.
Ford’s outstanding trotter, Marcoola, has been one of the mystery horses of this year’s Jewels meeting due to injury seeing him out in the paddock for most of 2017 and a poor fresh up run, by his usually high standards, at Addington earlier this month..
But in one minute and 56.5 seconds on Saturday afternoon, Ford and Marcoola elevated themselves right back to the top of the pecking order for Saturday’s, $100,000 Four-Year-Old Ruby with a brutal display against some of his key rivals.
Clearly not there for a quiet run, Marcoola well and truly blew any cobwebs out of the system with a rugged performance that left some quality flesh behind him gasping for air as he ran his rivals off their hooves in the one mile heat.
“We made the fatal mistake last year of going too easy on him leading into the Jewels,” trainer Ken Ford said.
“Instead of heading to Cambridge to get a good run under the belt we went to Pukekohe and didn’t quite get the run we needed which left us wanting the next week.
“So we were never going to make the same mistake again, he was here today for a good blowout and he got that.”
Surged forward from an outside barrier draw, Marcoola found the front and never looked back, trotting through the first 800 metres in 59 seconds to be 10 lengths clear running off the back straight.
That margin extended even further at the 400 metre mark, and although clearly tiring inside the final furlong, he was doing the necessary to hold of his rivals to win in 1:56.5.
“He cops racing pretty well, so that should bring him right on,” Ford said.
Marcoola will start from out wide in the Four-Year-Old Ruby, but judging by Saturday’s effort, he won’t be leaving anything to chance.
Missandei emerged late from the pack to run an encouraging second, but all were playing second fiddle to Marcoola who stole the show.
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