Left: Cranbourne trainer Robbie Laing will be hoping the smile lasts on Sunday after nominating two starters for this year’s Cranbourne Cup.By Brad Kingsbury
CRANBOURNE Cup nominations were highlighted by three entries each from the powerful Lee Freedman and David Hayes racing stables, with both camps eyeing the $156,000 booty.
Peter Moody and local trainer Robbie Laing also entered two runners in the surprisingly low total of 19 nominations for the Cranbourne Turf Club’s annual feature race.
The Freedman operation nominated Early Express, Itstheone and international import Soulacroix for the 2025-metre event, while the Hayes stable added Danever, Molotov and Royal Singer to the mix.
Hayes said last week that Molotov, which finished midfield in last Saturday’s Turnbull Stakes over 2000 metres at Flemington, was a good chance to run in the listed feature race.
Danever has had four runs back from a spell and will compete at his preferred distance range if he starts in the Cranbourne Cup, while Royal Singer is coming off a top win over 2000 metres at Seymour together with a string of placings in town.
Moody said yesterday that only one of his potential runners, Emerald Jack and Reggie, would start but he was yet to decide which it would be.
“They both have a chance in the race but I will probably only start one at this stage,” he said.
“Which one it is depends on the conditions and we’ll make up our minds closer to the day.”
Reggie has had three runs back from a spell and is on course for staying races while Emerald Jack has been competing over the shorter 1400-metre and 1600-metre trips and must jump to the longer distance.
Last year’s cup winner Blue Collar Jack, trained on the track by Ken Keys, will chase a second piece of silverware and will carry the sentiment of locals.
Laing will also fly the Cranbourne flag with Drumbeater and Hassle set for a start, while Allan Williams, father of star jockey Craig, has entered Danerette in the race, creating an interesting dilemma for his son, given Craig is the stable jockey for the Hayes camp.
Other nominations included El Pretender (Brenda Stewart), Falsetto (Mick Price), Pacino (Clint McDonald), Sarrera (Michael Maroney), Special Scene (Dan O’Sullivan), Zingara (Cliff Brown) and He’s Something for Pakenham trainer Kim Mayberry, however Mayberry said his horse would not be a starter.
The other two feature races on the card, the Settlers Run Golf and Country Club Handicap (1000 metres) and the Schweppes Classic (1400), attracted good nomination lists of 27 and 16 respectively, with several Cranbourne-trained horses high among the main chances.
Both features carry $50,000 prize purses.
