Canberra star Fell Swoop on the Victory podium at Doomben

THE margin may have been narrow but Fell Swoop’s gutsy display earned him a first Group win in Saturday’s Victory Stakes at Doomben. .

THE margin may have been narrow and rivals will fancy their chances of turning the ­tables in a fortnight, but Fell Swoop’s gutsy display earned him a first Group win in Saturday’s Victory Stakes.

Brisbane trainer Tony ­Gollan’s Didntcostalot ($8) ran his usual catch-me-if-you-can race over the 1200m Group 2 contest at Doomben and it took $1.55 favourite Fell Swoop the entire straight to gun him down.

Artlee caught the eye running on strongly from the back of the field to just edge out the consistent Knoydart for the minor end of the prize.

Canberra trainer Matthew Dale said he was pleased Fell Swoop was able to settle behind the speed, as he’s keen to progress to 1350m for the Doomben 10,000 and possibly 1400m of the Stradbroke over the next six weeks.

“I thought he did very well and dug deep to beat a horse who can run very fast time around this track,” Dale said.

“We knew Didntcostalot would be hard to run down. He flies around here. We also knew there’s been a bit of a fast lane towards the inside and it was likely we were going to have to come around him into the lesser part of the track.

“It was his first time to Doomben and the experience will have done him the world of good.”

Trainer Matthew Dale after his stable star’s win. Picture: Grant Peters, Trackside Photography

Jay Ford reiterated Dale’s belief that Fell Swoop is still some way off reaching his peak.

“What you have to remember with this horse is that he’s only had 14 starts and is still learning his trade,” Ford said.

“I know the margin wasn’t there and you would describe it more as tradesman like, but there was still a lot of merit in the win.

“He’s a horse that likes to build momentum and he wasn’t able to do that around here today. I had to ask him to go before the turn and it took a while for him to balance up.

“But what he has going for him is that he’s a winner and he will be better again for that.”

Tony Gollan was pleased with Didntcostalot’s effort, but felt he is capable of better. Gollan and jockey Tegan Harrison both felt the speedster wasn’t totally comfortable on the shifting surface.

“He was just a bit sticky in the going,” Harrison said.

Artlee’s trainer Todd Willan said his horse would turn the tables on the winner on a bigger track across the road.

“That’s exactly what we wanted. Hopefully the handicapper will boost his rating by a couple of points and bring us closer to a start in the Stradbroke,” Willan said.

Fell Swoop is expected to progress to 1350m for the Doomben 10,000 and possibly 1400m of the Stradbroke over the next six weeks. Picture: Grant Peters, Trackside Photography

Originally published as Canberra star Fell Swoop on the Victory podium at Doomben