He’s a speedy starter

By David Nagel
CRANBOURNE horse trainer Colin Scott has spring Group One glory in mind for his exciting four-year-old gelding, Speediness.
After a minor setback at the start of his campaign, it’s all systems go for Speediness, who completed his spring preparation with a controlled gallop at the Cranbourne trials on Monday.
It’s exciting times for Scott, who has an eye for a good horse after being stable foreman for successful trainer Colin Little. Scott has never had a horse compete at the spring carnival.
Scott appreciates his association with Speediness.
“He’s the best horse I’ve had, a lovely horse, so kind natured and so easy to train.
“We’ve got big plans in place for the spring but whatever he does, he’s only going to improve on, he’s still a bit immature and still growing,” Scott said.
The plans for Speediness certainly are big, starting off with Saturday’s Testa Rossa Stakes at Caulfield, followed by the Betfair Stakes, the Chatham Handicap and eventually the Group One Emirates Stakes, run on the last day of the Melbourne Cup carnival.
Scott knows a lot needs to go right.
“Look, he’ll need to win one or two of those races on the way through, to get his rating up to compete at Group One level, but that’s the ultimate aim,” Scott said.
Speediness has had six starts for two wins, two seconds and two thirds but for such an inexperienced horse is well travelled, having raced in the Hawkesbury Guineas and the William Inglis three-year-old classic at Scone.
It was at Scone where the Speediness form line gathered real momentum.
He ran second behind Sincero, who currently sits on the fourth line of betting for this year’s W.S. Cox Plate, considered in the top handful of races in Australia.
The Speediness camp did have the Cox Plate on their radar as well.
“We did discuss a build-up to the Cox Plate, but the horse got a low grade virus at the start of his preparation, so we had to alter the plan,” Scott said.
Who knows where the Speediness story might travel to next?