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Godolphin trainers Charlie Appleby and James Cummings sum up their runners on Cox Plate Day at Moonee Valley.

MOONEE VALLEY October 28

CHARLIE APPLEBY

RACE 9 - Ladbrokes Cox Plate (2040m)

FOLKSWOOD (Charlie Appleby): "We know there is a huge mountain in front of us now, but at the same time, we feel it is a great honour to participate against the wonder mare. Being among her rivals, we are all on the same page, but as Hugh Bowman (Winx's jockey) said, at the end of the day it is a horse race. I am happy with the draw, and I am very pleased the way Folkswood has come out of his Cranbourne experience."

JAMES CUMMINGS

RACE 3 - Telstra Phonewords Stakes (1200m)

TREKKING: “Trekking has run well twice this preparation without winning. We gave him a week off and he was able to go back to the jump outs and have a good hit out and his trip to the Valley yesterday was also good for him. He has form from good, strong, early three-year-old races like the Rosebud Stakes against horses like Menari.”

RACE 4 - Ladbrokes Crockett Stakes (1200m)

DEMERARA: “We gave her a good break after she won on debut as a two-year-old and let nature take its course and she returned and really rewarded us with a 1000m win at Gosford where she was too good for older rivals. When we brought her to town we tested her at 1200 metres which is a hard jump for a front-running horse like her. She took to it nicely and didn’t want to over race, just put herself into the race and kept fighting. She makes her Stakes debut here, but it’s a nice race for her. She’s had a few weeks between runs and she’s had a jump out and a trip to the Valley yesterday to get some experience on the track that can only help.”

JORDA: “She continues to put weight on which is a good sign for a racy, little filly like her and she really worked too well at Moonee Valley yesterday morning for me not to consider running on Saturday. She seems to be back in the zone after putting in so much effort against the colts in the San Domenico Stakes. Against these horses on Saturday coming out of a really high-rating race and ridden a bit more conservatively, could see her notch up a win.”

RACE 7 - italktravel Fillies Classic (1600m)

BANISH: “Banish won first up against older mares at Cranbourne then came to town and ran well twice at set weights races. We sent her back to the provincials a few weeks ago after showing us she wasn’t quite ready and she won really nicely again, beating older mares. Even though she meets some good fillies here, she has the ability to finish off really well, she has experience at the Valley and I think if she can see out the mile strongly, she can be in the finish.”

SPEEDWAY: “There was a huge question mark over her at 2000m and despite placing over that trip she looks much better dropping back to the mile and gets the opportunity to get a black-type win on her page. She comes into this without having been knocked around in the Ethereal at Caulfield last week.”

RACE 8 - Schweppes Crystal Mile (1600m)

IT’S SOMEWHAT: “He runs second-up on Saturday in the G2 Crystal Mile after being unplaced first-up when he was unsuited over 1400 but that was the run he needed to be ready for this weight-for-age mile race. He’s had a good break in between runs which he’s shown a liking for. This has been a target race for him for quite a while and I think that it could be a really nice one to pick up. He was good in a jump out recently and he was good at the Valley on Tuesday when he galloped on the course proper. I was really happy with his gallop. He’s a horse with a really bold action and he could have been at risk of not getting around a tight track like this. He can put himself right into a race and try to take luck out of the equation.”

RACE 10 - Drummond Golf Vase (2040m)

SANCTIONED: “He runs at 2000m for the second time this prep after he ran on well to finish fourth in the Spring Champion Stakes after going back from a wide gate. We tested him in the Caulfield Guineas and he drew wide again and his run was that of a horse still looking for further. So he’s come through that well and he still looks full of life coming into this which will potentially be a strong lead-up to the Derby. What he’ll need to show us though is that he can hit the line well and mix it with these horses. But he’s got what it takes to be competitive here.”