By Tayler Strong
Scarlett Banner, who has performed well in distinguished company, could capitalise on the ace draw to win the heat of the Nevele R sponsored heat of the Sires’ Stakes for 3yr-old fillies at Forbury Park on Thursday night. Scarlet Banner has come in to barrier one for the 1700m (mobile) with the scratching of Changeling Dana.
Scarlett Banner won a super series race for her age group at Addington in October and finished second to Piccadilly Princess in a heat of a fillies series there the same month. She ran fourth in the Ladyship Stakes in Auckland and fourth behind Piccadilly Princess in as heat of the Nevele R series on grass at Methven.
She will be driven by her trainer Gavin Smith who has a likely second string on Allison Stokke. She finished second in a C0 race at Winton on Saturday. Allison Stokke won as a 2yr-old at Ashburton in May.
Rakarazor, who finished third in 1.54.1 for a mile at Winton on Saturday, should run a merry 1700m from barrier three. Rakarazor who has not finished further back than third in her last six starts, won over a mile in 1.58.3 early in the season.
RR Sand Dollar, winner of her last two starts, is capable of overcoming an outside barrier draw. She ran second to the talented Nek Time in a listed race for 3yr-olds at Addington in February.
October Rain, a dashing winner from a 20m handicap at Wingatui on Monday, rates highly in race 7.
Ronnoco, who had his first win for close on two years on Monday, is engaged in race 10. Three of his five wins have been at Forbury Park.
She’s Allthe Craze, a six length workout winner winner at Ascot Park on Sunday, will be the centre of attention in race 5. The 3yr-old trotting filly is wearing blinds.
Meanwhile, it is unlikely the group three Four and Five-Year-Old Championship will be staged by the Forbury Park Trotting Club this season.
The club dropped the $25,000 race from the card for Thursday after it only attracted six horses.
“The club felt the stake could be better used somewhere else and we did not have a sponsor,’’ said Gerald Cayford, the president of the club.” The committee will be discussing whether we re-programme the race.”
The small number of nominations was no doubt impacted by a premier meeting at Addington on Saturday night with a $25,000 free-for-all and a conditioned race for 4yr-old and older horses.
But the Championship, established in 1977, has struggled for support since it was switched from February to a pre-Easter date and opened to five-year-olds in 2011. The average size of the field has been eight with a low of seven and a high of 10.
The stake was reduced from $29,000 when the switch was made.
The Four and Five-Year-Old Championship had become the most important race for the club after the Group Three Dunedin Trotting Cup was discontinued in 1999. The Dunedin Cup, later the Dunedin Festival Cup (run in heats and a final) established in 1910 for pacers was the flagship race for the club until 1972.
The Pelorus Classic for four and five-year-old pacers was dropped by the Marlborough club in January when it attracted four nominations.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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