3 minute read

I'm generally not a believer of horse's turning it up or not wanting to win, but after last weekend it's hard not to be.

You won't see a better losing ride, McDonald gave True Detective a 15/10, but he still found a way to get beat.

It reminded me a lot of this horse I once owned called My Foolish Notion, she had 33 starts, never won a race, but ran second four times.

She was obviously limited, but I'll never forget one of her final starts at Queanbeyan.

Although her form had been very patchy, we found a weak race, she was on the quick back up, drawn well and was sent out the 5/4 favourite.

Brendan Ward rode her and at the top of the straight she looked to have the race shot to bits, but still found a way to lose.

Click here to watch the replay

I'll never forget the call from Anthony Manton.

"It's now or never for the mare, she hit the front, she's going to have a good think about it."

"Vie Sera came back, she'll never win one My Foolish Notion."

Beaten a head and Manton was spot on, she never did.

After last weekend I'm happy to throw True Detective into the same pile, he'll never win another race, well not in Sydney anyway.

Hoping we find a few that savage the line a little better on Saturday and while she will need some luck from the draw, firmly in Fituese's corner.

A winner of three of her five starts, she arguably could be 4/5 with her only defeat coming in last year's Gosford Guineas, beaten 1.6L.

Returning from a four month break, she has had two trials in the lead up, her most recent scoring easily on the Kensington track over 736m.

She appears in fine fettle for her return, she'll just need a few things to go her way from the draw.

In a race with an abundance of speed up front, just hoping King can slot in somewhere just off the speed, she may be able to tag Mansa Musa or Axe across.

Always tricky as you don't want to get too far back over 1000m, but if she can find a back to follow, confident she can get over the top of them.

When assessing Timeform weight adjusted ratings, she holds a clear edge and given I feel she has improved further leading into this preparation, she should prove very hard to beat.

In the seventh event the James Cummings trained Hilo appears well placed to return to the winner's stall.

While no match for Indy Car last start, he still stuck on well and should appreciate the firmer footing on Saturday.

He is already a dominant winner at the course and distance (first up) and has drawn to get into a lovely spot with King sticking aboard.

Do respect fellow 3YO Hightail, he went to the paddock in great form and can certainly sprint well fresh.

The pair appear very well treated at the weights, just lean to Hilo with the recent runs on the board.

Simon Dinopoulos' Three Tips:

Race 4 #5 Fituese @ $3.00

Race 7 #9 Hilo @ $3.60

Race 8 #12 Bandersnatch @ $3.00