Maque re au can go one better after stunning Cairns Cup effort
HIS runs in the Townsville and Cairns Cups were night and day, but Tolga trainer Sharlee D’Avila is confident about which Maquereau will turn up at Cannon Park on Saturday.
A perfect barrier has boosted D’Avila’s hopes of claiming the biggest win of her career with the seven-yearold in the Cairns Amateurs Cup.
Maquereau will jump from barrier five and was on Friday afternoon a $9 chance with TAB for the $150,000 feature race over 2100m.
Since saluting in his first North Queensland start just over a year ago – at the blowout price of $51, no less – he’s been a consistent performer, with five wins and three seconds from 12 starts in the north.
D’Avila also sent Maquereau down to Brisbane last December, where he ran fifth in the Country Cups Challenge Final (1600m) at Doomben.
Maquereau nosed out Brilliant Mind over 1500m in Cairns three starts back, before barely firing a shot and beating one runner home in the Townsville Cup on August 7.
Despite looming as a big threat turning into the Cluden Park straight, he wilted to finish well back.
In his last start, he provided the eye-catcher in the Cairns Cup (2100m), flashing home to make up nine positions and finish second, despite over-racing early and being held up near the turn.
D’Avila believed the gelding had excuses for his Townsville run, and hoped he could put up a bold showing on Saturday.
“In hindsight I may have pushed him a little as he had a foot abscess not long before the race and he seems to like Cairns a lot better than Townsville,” she said.
“It all comes down to luck in running in these sorts of races, but he’s drawn well and he’s even stronger in his work now.”
Jockey Lacey Morrison will take the reins, in a superstition of sorts, and will be chasing a third win aboard Maquereau.
“He was bred by Ben Ahrens at Beaudesert and Ben told me the other day his name is French for ‘pimp’,” D’Avila said. “It’s strange as all his five wins for me have been for girls – Kate Southam and Lacey Morrison.”
D’Avila scored with her sole runner on Friday’s Ladies Day, with Soldati getting the chocolates in the Benchmark 70 Handicap (1500m).
Meanwhile, Cairns Jockey Club president and prolific owner Tom Hedley had four winners, with three of them also giving Cairns trainer Stephen Massingham a treble.