04 July 2019 | Ken Casellas
It’s been more than eight months since Tommy Be Good’s most recent victory and the seven-year-old has been sent out as a rank outsider at $91 at each of his past two starts.
But in-form reinsman Shannon Suvaljko is confident that the experienced gelding will go very close to ending a losing sequence of 13 by taking full advantage of the No. 1 barrier in the 2130m Direct Trades Supply Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Tommy Be Good, trained at Byford by Katja Warwick, has suddenly bounced back to top form with excellent fast-finishing seconds at his past two starts after having been unplaced at his previous 11 starts, following his most recent success, when Suvaljko brought him home with a powerful burst to win the 2130m Parliamentarians Cup last October.
“He’s flying again,” Suvaljko enthused. “He has taken a couple of runs to get back to his best. He’s working really good and I expect him to run a good race again. He nearly won the Winter Cup two starts ago; if I hadn’t been held up between the two corners I probably would’ve won. He came from a fair way back and came home quick.”
Tommy Be Good was eighth at the bell in the Winter Cup and surged home to be second to the frontrunning Tact Major, who rated 1.55 over the 2536m. Then a week later, last Friday night, Tommy Be Good started from the No. 6 barrier and was eighth at the bell before sprinting home to be a close second to Golden State.
“I drove him on the Byford track on the Wednesday before last week’s race and gave him a good hit-out,” Suvaljko said. “I’ve never worked anything like he did on that day, so I expected him to run a big race and he did. He came right around them and it was a super run against Golden State.
“He’s drawn barrier one and he gets out okay. I haven’t spoken to Kat yet and therefore I don’t know what she wants to do. But he’s got good enough speed to lead. Zennart and Herrick Roosevelt are also likely to go forward.”
Zennart and Herrick Roosevelt are trained by Gary Hall Snr and are recent winners, while Greg and Skye Bond hold a strong hand in the race with three runners, last-start winners Mighty Santana and Bettor Not Bitter as well as veteran Our Jimmy Johnstone.
Suvaljko also fancies his chances with veteran Lagoon Stride, who will start from the inside of the back line in the 1730m Westside Auto Wholesale Pace.
The eight-year-old Lagoon Stride has just changed stables and he made a successful debut for Byford trainer Peter Tilbrook in a 2130m event at Gloucester Park on Tuesday night when he trailed the pacemaker Bettor B Abeliever and dashed to the front 120m from the post to win comfortably. This victory at $4.70 ended a losing sequence of 68, stretching back to March 2016.
Lagoon Stride is expected to gain a perfect trail behind the likely pacemaker Vincenzo Peruggia, who has been unplaced at his past five starts after winning ten times earlier in the season.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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