Trainers beat own record

The foundation on which Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman’s outstanding season has been built is teamwork.

The Cambridge trainers surpassed their own national training record at Tauherenikau when Electrode credited them with their 115th win of 2017-18.

“Obviously, it has been very satisfying and we have very good staff, owners and jockeys,” said Forsman. “Murray and myself are only part of it, we have some very capable people behind us and it’s thanks to them.

“It’s been a solid season and we’ve managed to keep the momentum going right the way through.”

Forsman said the emergence of the 3-year-old Vin De Dance had been one of their season’s highlights.

“Winning a derby is special and we competed well in Melbourne — we’ve won four stakes races in Australia as well as 16 here so we’ve been kicking goals on both sides of the Tasman.”

Their reigning New Zealand Horse of the Year Bonneval led the charge at the Melbourne spring carnival with victory in the Gr.1 Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield off the back of her resuming success in the Gr.2 Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes (1600m) at Moonee Valley. The stable will also have a further chance to add to their away record with the inform Karisto, who has won his last two starts at Rotorua and Te Rapa, bound for the Queensland winter carnival.

“He flew out on Friday and, all going well, he’ll soon have his first start,” said Forsman.