3 minute read
Never any real surprise when regional racing icon and 1989 Doncaster winner Barbara Joseph wins another race in town with her sons Paul and Matt from their substantial Sapphire Coast and ACT stables.
But what puzzles them pleasantly is the massive odds and underrating of form country gallopers as they produce another outsider at big value in Two Aye into the TAB Highway at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
Enjoying super successive seasons, they accepted with Two Aye on the 54kg limit to be ridden by Reece Jones and stablemate Les Goh who will be scratched and kept for the Moruya TAB meeting on Monday.
Lightly raced Two Aye a highly impressive winner of a modest early season Goulburn maiden will be jumping grades into the Class 3, $120,000, 1600m episode where the four-year-old Deep Field mare is $12 in early TAB markets (in from $13) while Les Goh was framed at $41.
But outsider odds nor the opposition has never deterred the 80-year plus Bombala grandmother who was the first female trainer to win a Doncaster with Merimbula Bay in 1989.
City winners have been regular enough ever since but some of the odds about smart country winners have been mind boggling.
This season and last the stable has won in town with Room Number at $61, Super Helpful at $51 and recently at headquarters with Belleistic Kids at $11 - a horse that they highly fancied.
"We've had a terrific trot; I don't bet, occasionally $25 each-way if the boys really like one, I leave the punting to owners," Barb explained from her Bombala farm as she rarely travels far since COVID.
"We were confident those horses were up to city grade, the boys thought Belleistic Kids was way overs and he led and won like a favourite."
Barb's sons were racing at Kembla on Wednesday where they thought Louie's Legacy could win and was beaten a long neck at $9.50.
"The blinkers are back on for Two Aye - we've had an opinion of this mare after a big maiden win but she's been disappointing since. Hopefully the blinkers and race fitness make a difference.
"Two runs back this prep, she's been showing more. Up in grade but hopefully running into form no weight and out to the 1600m on the big track.
"The other mare (Les Goh) is a half to Belleistic Kids, drew wide here, prefer not to clash and the Moruya race was more suitable.
"We originally bought Two Aye and the way she won her maiden had the makings of a good mare."
The Deep Field four-year-old certainly did, winning at Goulburn in May over 1500m by nearly four lengths at $1.45 and then placed at Hawkesbury in harder grade.
Two Aye's last start fifth at Moruya was better than the form suggests. She was last on the tight and turning track, didn't get clear until late and eventually was beaten just over a length into fifth place.
Lyle Chandler's Mazita is the $4.60 favourite on TAB ahead of the Matthew Dunn-trained I Am Good At This ($5) with Nash Rawiller aboard and Frenchman Lou Mary's last start series winner Magic Pharoah ($6).
It's another capacity Highway field at headquarters where the track is rated a Good 4 with some showers forecast prior to raceday.
