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Trainer Matthew Smith says there’s not a lot of room for error if Nimalee is to carry top weight and win the inaugural $500,000 The Coast (1600m) at Gosford on Saturday.
A Group 2 winner two starts ago, Nimalee is clearly the highest rated horse in the three and four-year-old feature and therefore has top weight of 59kg.
That presents a challenge for jockey Rachel King, according to Matthew Smith, but not an insurmountable one.
"With that sort of weight at that track things have to go right,'' he said.
"She's got to get the right run, there are horses in there with light weights that are nice horses and will be hard to hold out if we don't get a good position and get her settled.
"The race has to be run perfect for her, she'll need the perfect run and ride."
Nimalee, $5.50 favourite with TAB on Friday, followed her Group 2 Emancipation Stakes win, which came on the back of a setback and a six week gap between runs, with a fading ninth in the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes (1600m) at Randwick on April 24.
It was a run Smith is happy enough to forget, the race didn't pan out as hoped as Nimalee chased the leader Greysful Glamour and had nothing left for the finish.
He said the mare has trained on well since that rare miss and is excited about what lies ahead beyond The Coast.
"It's a good prizemoney race and we're really only two runs into the prep so she can have another run then have a break. It fits in nicely for us," he said.
"She's well above average. I think she can win a decent race in the future."
Stayer Sweet Thomas resumes in the Listed $250,000 Reward Group & Luux Properties Gosford Gold Cup (2100m) and Smith said it's very much a starting point.
But he warns not to overlook two-year-old Cool Lad, in the Central Coast Handicap (1200m) and beyond, who will go around as an outsider at his second start just as he did on debut.
The colt ran second to Aslav as a $101 chance at Hawkesbury on April 14, he's been back to the trials for a win since then but is still $26 on Saturday.
"I know his trials (before) weren't much to write home about and he got under people's guard a bit,'' he said.
"When he gets up to 1400m he'll be pretty handy. He's a really nice horse. Gosford won't suit him but he needs to run because I'd like to take him to Brisbane."
