Manning stable gets back winning option

THERE was plenty of cause for celebration in the Jason Manning camp at Fannie Bay yesterday when Night Option won the third race on the card, the Aggreko Handicap (1600m).

Trainer Manning and jockey Vanessa Arnott had not won since late August but all that changed about 5pm yesterday.

Night Option, a five-yearold gelding that Manning bought as a yearling, won by four lengths.

Trainer David Jupp filled the minor placings with Grassy ( Melanie Tyndall) second and African Prince (Richie Oakford) third.

‘‘We have been knocking on the door,’’ Arnott said. ‘‘We are just starting to kick on now. It seems the older he gets he loves to lead.’’

The stable’s last winner was Flash Madica at Adelaide River the meeting after the Darwin Cup Carnival.

‘‘We’ve had about 15 placings so the team has been going good, but it is nice to get that winner,’’ Manning said.

‘‘It’s Night Option’s fifth win and we’ve had him four years in the stable, so he has pretty much paid his way.’’

The Chris Pollard-trained Twin Falls got the five-race meeting off to a great start with a blanket finish to the HBGroup Trobis Handicap.

The four- year- old mare, ridden by apprentice jockey

Wehave been knocking on the door

Felicia Bergstrand, proved too strong in the finishing straight, winning by a neck from Sunstroem ( Wayne Davis) with Cordelia (Melanie Tyndall) a half-head back in third.

Bergstrand was all smiles. It was Twin Falls’ second start, having finished last of seven last month.

The sky seems to be the limit for Agent Of Mercy, or that is what connections of the four-year-old mare are starting to believe.

The Gary Clarke-trained mare had no problems seeing off the field in race two, the Coomalie Air Handicap.

Jockey Brendon Davis was pleased again with Agent of Mercy’s showing as she made it a hat-trick of wins on the trot after moving up from Victoria in late September.

‘‘She keeps stepping up in grade and keeps going well,’’ Davis said.

Agent of Mercy won by three- and- three- quarter lengths going away from the Chris Pollard-trained Dash About, with Redangelo a length behind third.

‘‘She jumped straight on the bridle, travelled well and just ran away from them in the straight,’’ Davis said. ‘‘We thought that this (class) would be her limit but she keeps on winning. She’s an honest little girl and kept running strong to the line.’’

The Pollard- Bergstrand team grabbed a winning double for the day in the last, the Primo Cardona Class B Handicap, when Come by Sunday won by one-and-aquarter lengths. Manningtrained Our Rhomeo was second ahead of Bushmaster (Richie Oakford).

Pollard was pleased with the performance of his fiveyear-old mare, who was first up after a four-months spell.

‘‘ She came from down south and always had a bit of form but she should go on after today,’’ he said.