Hectic few days for Williamson
JOHNNY Cash singing I’ve Been Everywhere would make an appropriate song for Oamaru trainer Phil Williamson to blast through his truck speakers this weekend.
The master trotting trainer, who is also known to be a big fan of country music, will load up his float this weekend with horses bound for Forbury Park tonight, Addington tomorrow night and Invercargill on Sunday.
Williamson has 11 horses entered at the three meetings with 13 winning chances, given two are likely to line up twice.
Intermediate grade trotter Father Christmas and Pyramid Magic have the feature trots and Forbury Park and Ascot Park on both of their agendas.
Although Father Christmas has been down on his very best form in his most recent starts, Williamson is confident he can turn that around tonight.
‘‘I’m expecting him to be hard to beat. Just on the class factor.’’
The trainer also expects Pyramid Magic to have enough fitness on his side to compete well, fresh up since winning at Wyndham in November.
The Armbro Invasion trotter has had three trials this month leading into his resumption, although none have been ‘‘too flash’’, Williamson said.
‘‘He is reasonably forward.’’
Both trotters are highly likely to back up at Invercargill on Sunday, when they both look good chances, Williamson said.
Jeddy R Ya Reddy takes on lowerrated trotters in race 5 tonight, in a race that looks well within his grasp.
Inconsistent manners, which are responsible for his patchy recent form, will determine his chances.
‘‘He has kind of missed away half his starts . . . and taken no part.’’
‘‘If he gets away he is a first four chance.’’
In race 8, the lone pacer among Williamson’s weekend charges, Elusive Flight, will look to get back to his usual consistent form after a downthetrack effort at Oamaru earlier in the month.
Less than 24 hours after his fourpronged Forbury attack, Williamson will head to Addington’s premier night of racing. There, headlinegrabbing filly Zoey’s Gift will tackle the New Zealand Trotting Oaks. Although his charge has drawn handily in barrier 5, that did not garner leaps of joy from her trainer.
Williamson is more concerned about his charge trotting out safely in the early stages of the race, rather than where she has drawn.
‘‘It will come down to her manners more so than the draw,’’
That means there is no chance the horse will be pushed forward from her five barrier.
‘‘Unfortunately, at this early stage, her gait is not good enough to do that.’’
That may mean the muchhyped trotting filly settles further back in the running than some punters would expect at first glance.
‘‘She has to trot through that early piece and there is a question mark over that.’’
Her trainer is hoping that despite her safe style of beginning she will not be shuffled back too far in the race, which would see her competitive at the finish.
‘‘If she could hold a forward position in the race, that would give her her chance.’’
Brads Kenny and Blazing Under Fire represent the Williamson stable in race 9 at Addington, the 45yrold Trotting Championship.
Getting away safely, before staying handy to the speed and ‘‘hanging in there’’ would be their mission against their classy opponents. The trainer expects Paul Nairn stablemates Habiti Ivy and Wilma’s Mate to have a class edge on his two runners.
Williamson will have put more than 1300km on his truck after campaigning six runners at Invercargill on Sunday.
Maddison Jane’s manners put her in first four contention when she takes on her stablemates Pyramid Magic and Father Christmas in race 10.
Bobbins gives the horseman a fourpronged attack on the race, but she needs to step away rather than add to her lengthy list of raceday indiscretions, to be a chance, he said.
Pyramid Mustang is in a similar position after not being on his game in his most recent starts, but he strikes a field well within his range, in race 3
Williamson was not getting carried away about the chances of Bet’s Commando in Invercargill’s opening race.
The 3yrold was a ‘‘first four chance’’ on the back of her three trials in preparation for her freshup run, since last racing in July last year.