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Attard Enjoys A Big Day At Orange

3 minute read

Jason Attard opened his account for the season at Orange on Money when a winning double made up half of a four-win haul by Hawkesbury trainers.

It was all one-way traffic in the first half of the program with the first four races all going to Hawkesbury.

Attard became the 15th Hawkesbury-based trainer to win at least one race this season – then celebrated with a double from his only two runners.

He scored with lightly-raced pair Pretty Song and Redazzity in consecutive events with expatriate South African Keagan Latham aboard both winners.

Leading Hawkesbury trainer Brad Widdup landed his eighth winner of the season with debutant Indicators On and Terry Croft recorded his second when progressive stayer Orokonui was too classy for his rivals.

The foursome lifted the number of winners prepared at Hawkesbury so far this month to 10, and 37 overall since the beginning of the season on August 1.

Pretty Song, a four-year-old mare by Your Song, was having only her sixth start when she beat Narrow Neck Nelson and another Hawkesbury representative, Garry White’s Another Shadow, in the 1300m Maiden Handicap.

Pretty Song started out in Queensland but did not race there before joining Attard’s team. She had been placed on three occasions leading up to the Orange assignment.

Redazzity, a Red Dazzler four-year-old, was having only his fourth start and relished stepping up to the 1600m of the Maiden Handicap after tackling shorter events (two over 1300m and the other over 1200m).

He toughed it out strongly to beat favorite Seven Falls and another Hawkesbury runner, Wayne Austin’s Ellie Beach.

Attard said Pretty Song was up to provincial quality, but perhaps not this campaign.

“We’ll see how she pulls up; she may go to the paddock,” he said.

“Redazzity is still learning to race, and dropping back in grade and an increase in distance helped him.”

Attard also paid credit to Latham, whom he described as a “most underrated jockey”.

“He comes out every week and rides work, and has done a good job teaching Redazzity how to run,” he said.

Widdup was on course to see War three-year-old Indicators On (Greg Ryan) make an impressive debut in the Maiden Plate (1000m).

The gelding tracked the speed, burst through a gap on straightening and raced clear to beat another Hawkesbury debutant, Scott Singleton’s Niccirose.

“For a first starter, he was super professional,” winning rider Ryan said.

Indicators On, raced by Go Bloodstock, had trialled four times and beat stablemate Rare Episode (a subsequent easy debut Gosford October 4 winner) in his latest 798m hitout at Warwick Farm on September 24.

Orokonui (Grant Buckley) understandably was all the rage for the Class 1/Maiden Plate (2100m) on the strength of four recent placings; the latest when runner-up to Scratches in a Benchmark 70 Handicap (2130m) at Warwick Farm on October 3.

And he justified the short quote. Buckley left nothing to chance by sweeping around the field toward the home turn and taking control.

Orokonui was never threatened from then on and easily beat Singleton’s Decapitor, who nonetheless stuck gamely to his task.

“I brought him here because there was nothing really suitable at home,” Croft said.

“He is progressing nicely and there is a 2400m race (Benchmark 70 Handicap) at Randwick on Melbourne Cup day which should suit him.”


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