Now that he has tasted feature race success, he’s keen for more.
This is the situation surrounding harness racing fanatic Trevor O’Reilly, a super keen Queensland based owner/breeder.
O’Reilly races exciting freshman filly Jossie James with his wife Louise, a filly they bred and bought back after she failed to reach her reserve price at last year’s Australian Pacing Gold Yearling Sale.
The reserve was set at $16,000.
But the early results have been very rewarding for the O’Reilly’s following her victory in the Gr.2 $80,000 Albion Park Gold Final back in April.
And now they have an excellent chance of expanding on that with a victory in Saturday night’s Gr.2 $50,000 QBRED Breeders Classic Fillies Final at Albion Park.
Jossie James, prepared by astute mentor Wayne Graham must overcome a shocking second-line draw and the might of the Grant Dixon stable which prepare half of the field lining up to claim her second feature race trophy this season.
“On paper, the draw is a real bludger but when you look at some of the higher rated fillies in the race like January, Bonnie Jujon and Eleniark, they’re also facing tricky draws so it could be a real tactical battle out there. I wouldn’t swap my filly though; I think she has a really bright future.” O’Reilly said.
Since her feature race triumph back in April, Jossie James tasted defeat when a game second to smart colt Maestro Bellini at Albion Park twelve days ago.
The Big Jim – Empty Promises filly started favourite and peaked on her run with 100m remaining while the winning mile rate was a more than respectable 1:55.0.
“Her effort was excellent because she was badly in need of that run and those boys are all very good, in fact, they’re the top three chances on Saturday night in the boys final so that only adds to her performance.
“I like the fact my filly has drawn on the outside which gives us more room to move compared to those others fillies drawn the second-line. Her biggest asset is her speed and I think that will be the difference this weekend, her times are a little quicker too when you start comparing them with her rivals.
“I’m excited about our chances this weekend; I’ve got a lot of nervous energy going on at the moment. I’ve been racing horses for many decades now and everyone kept telling me that racing a good horse is a lot of fun which is right but it comes with high expectations so the stress levels rise quickly as a result. I can go without the stress, maybe it gets easier with time.”
A victory on Saturday gives connections a chance of landing the first picket fence panel for the Racing Queensland/UBET Challenge where three wins on the trot including the Gr.1 $100,000 QBRED Triad Final on July 16 is required.
The bonus is worth $20,500.
The O’Reilly couple also has an excellent chance in the $15,000 colts and geldings consolation with the ideally drawn Clintal Do for trainer/driver Dayl March.
A maiden after two starts, the Dawn Ofa New Day gelding looks very capable of shedding that maiden tag in the 1660m event.
Next week, the O’Reilly’s head to Menangle where they will be represented by Might And Main in the Gr.1 $127,500 NSW Breeders Challenge 2yo Fillies Final.
Trained and driven by top Bathurst horseman Bernie Hewitt, the Art Major Filly will start from gate four.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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