3 minute read

A return to Moonee Valley after a winter on the sidelines has brought out a few promising horses this weekend.

One of the more promising runners on the card is the now gelded Tavisan who was fairly soft in the betting given his form credentials when resuming at Sandown and it's easy to envisage sharp improvement at the Valley on Saturday. 

That Tavisan was so easy to back and still won as well as he did bodes well for the prep ahead with a 1000m win perhaps a bonus on the way to bigger and better things - a paid barrier trial of sorts. 

His first up rating was competitive for Saturday regardless but 1200m is expected to bring out better in Tavisan who was profiling nicely around this time last year when he kept the subsequent Doncaster winner Brutal on his toes around the Valley before honest placings in the Danehill and Guineas Prelude before things came unstuck. 

While there is some depth to the handicap he contests at the Valley on Saturday, notably the useful Age Of Chivalry, Tavisan has the runs on the board to be a player in better races and is fancied to make his way back up the pecking order starting with a win on Saturday. 

The second on the card is a ripping little contest for the now three-year-old fillies. 

It's a potentially tricky betting race where Jedastar heads the market off some slick jump outs and the right sort of form last season. That's fair enough but there are several here who posted similar peaks last term and among those was Andrassy Avenue who is set to spin around here at each way odds.  

Her smash up of Mockery around here a week before the Blue Diamond rates well for this and that may just have been enough for her in that prep. She's worth playing on Saturday. 

THE MELBOURNE MAIL 

Bet Of The Day: Race 8 #9 Tavisan @ $4.50

Each Way Play: Race 2 #7 Andrassy Avenue @ $7.50