Fickle hand of fate Jenkinson wins with Wallander after sale plan falls over
NEIL Jenkinson has a knack for finding quality racehorses and it turns out he is just as good at breeding them.
The bloodstock agent has bought or bred the likes of Typhoon Tracy, Frolic, Shot Of Thunder, Al Mansour, Care To Think, Kebede and Madotti.
He celebrated another victory when the Matthew Dunn-trained Wallander ($3.20) won the Colts, Geldings and Entires Maiden Handicap (1300m) at the Gold Coast on Saturday.
Jenkinson and Ian Cornell, who owned Wallander’s dam Ro’s Purring, bred the now three-year-old gelding and kept shares in the horse.
He considers Wallander to be a metropolitan standard runner after securing a fivelength victory at Aquis Park on Saturday.
“He is a horse we have had a really good opinion of from day one,” the 48-year-old from Robina said.
“He probably should have won his first start (at Doomben) but he was a bit unlucky with the way the race was run.
“We think he is a Saturday class horse … he has got a really good future.
“He has a few little quirks. “He is a bit tardy at the gate so he has to get a few things in order but he is a lovely animal and he will be a really nice horse in the next couple of years.”
Jenkinson and Cornell originally planned to sell Wallander, a son of Domesday, as a yearling but were forced to withdraw him from the sale after he failed to pass a scope.
The twist of fate could work out in their favour if Wallander continues his rate of improvement after earning $16,135 in prizemoney from four runs.
“He had a little issue and we couldn’t sell him so we ended up racing him,” Jenkinson said.
“He failed a scope and actually had a wind operation so we were forced to keep him.
“Matthew (Dunn) is telling us we have a nice horse so hopefully he is right.”