NZ HARNESS NEWS
Exciting northern filly Girls On Film will head south next week to tackle the $50,000 Group 2 NZ Trotting Oaks at Addington.
Trainers John and Joshua Dickie are taking her down for the feature along with stable star Speeding Spur and while last season’s Jewels winner Paramount King could join them later.
“She’s booked to fly down on Tuesday for the Oaks next Friday night,” said Joshua Dickie.
“We’ll give her a quiet run at the workouts this week to keep her ticking over.”
Girls On Film broke twice in the first few hundred metres at Alexandra Park last Friday night and finished a long and lonely last when a white-hot favourite.
Prior to that she had been ultra-impressive winning three in a row.
“That was our own fault; she was a bit fresh and we sort of new by Wednesday or Thursday that she might have been doing a bit too well.
“She does tend to take a bit of work and it was nothing to worry about, really.”
The likes of Breeders Crown champion Renezmae and Southland Trotting Oaks winner Luby Lou await her, but Dickie isn’t scared.
“I think she’s pretty smart and has great stamina for a young horse.
“Her last win really impressed me as not many horses go 3.29 at that age and it’s not like she had an easy trip, either – she had to work hard to win it.
“She ticks all the boxes to make a top three-year-old.”
Paramount King has had a rather inglorious start to his three-year-old season, galloping at both starts when a hot favourite.
He could head south with a view to the $100,000 Group 1 New Zealand Trotting Derby at Addington on April 6, but will need to do things right at the workouts on Saturday.
“Things just haven’t gone according to plan with him but we are confident that we’ve got him back on track.
“He’s another one that can have a quite trial this week and then he’ll race at Auckland next Friday night.
“If’s he come right, which we think he has, we’ll send him down for the Derby.”
Speeding Spur ran second in a pacers’ heat at the Pukekohe workouts on Saturday and it was enough to book himself a trip south.
“I was really happy with him the other day; he really impressed me with how he found the line.
“He gave me a good feel and it seems like he’s back on track.
“There’s a race for him at Addington with a 30-metre back mark next week and then he can go in the Trotting Champs (Group 1, $100,000) a fortnight later.”
- NZ Harness News
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