Gold Coast Rewind: Nathan Exelby and Ben Dorries look back at winners and losers from Hollindale Stakes Day

THE Courier Mail’s Nathan Exelby and Ben Dorries review Saturday’s Gold Coast meeting, with comments from the beaten division and all the big winners.

THE Courier Mail’s Ben Dorries reviews Saturday’s Gold Coast meeting, with comments from the beaten division and the big winners.

Race 1

“TRICKY horse” Royal Occasion made a winning run down the centre of the track to win the opener at the Gold Coast.

Both Royal Accasion ($20) and runner-up Apple Thief made their runs in the middle of the track from well back in the field. Third-placed Kraftwerk loomed as the winner at one stage but was no match for the first two in the run to the line.

All of the speed runners capitulated and were well beaten.

“It wasn’t a plan to come to the centre because of the track, it’s just that is the only way to ride him,” trainer Matt Dunn said of Royal Accasion.

THE BETTING

Kraftwerk $1800 and $1400 @ $5

Siegfried $1000 @ $7.50

UBET reported the quinella pair were the two best results in its book.

Gold Coast trainer John Wilcock after Court’s Star improved dramatically to salute. Picture: Grant Peters, Trackside Photography

Race 2

A SLOW post-race recovery was blamed for the poor last-start effort of Court’s Star, who gave punters another headache to start the day with his win in the second.

Jockey Anthony Allen said he had a lot of horse on the turn and wasn’t surprised the gelding kept going.

THE FAVOURITE

“She just kept whacking away, which is a sign she’s looking for 2000m now,” apprentice Josh Oliver said of Col ‘N’ Lil.

THE BETTING

Court’s Star was responsible for just 1% of UBET’s hold on the race, whereas runner-up Col ‘N’ Lil accounted for 33% of the entire book.

Royal Tithe keeps the punters on their knees after another short favourite is beaten into third place. Picture: Grant Peters, Trackside Photography

Race 3

PUNTERS lost their shirts when $1.50 favourite Impending got rolled after a luckless run, with Royal Tithe providing the third rough result to start the day. Winner Royal Tithe is now off to the BRC Sires.

THE FAVOURITE

One of the connections of Impending said: “It wasn’t the most imaginative ride from a top jock, was it?’’

While James McDonald admitted he got it wrong: “In hindsight I probably should have just come to the outside.”

THE BETTING

Punters bet on this like it was a one-horse race and, naturally enough, the only bad result for the bookies was the hotpot favourite. 66 cents of every dollar bet on the race was for Impending at $1.50, but by the time the O’Shea colt got out it was too late. His third placing also busted any amount of multis.

Winning jockey Luke Dittman with trainer John Zielke. Picture: Grant Peters, Trackside Photography

Race 4

Blake Shinn thought he had the winner covered for sure on Self Esteem, but Imposing Lass packed too many guns to land the Bracelet.

“At the 300m I knew it was going to be a race in two and I must admit I thought I had the winner covered, but she turned in a courageous effort to hold me off,” Shinn said.

Winning trainer Bjorn Baker is confident there’s still much more to come from Imposing Lass and is not necessarily one dimensional, believing she will be just as effective coming from off the speed.

THE BEATEN BRIGADE

Robbie Fradd said he had to niggle at Dawnie Perfect the whole way “otherwise she would just get too far back” and felt it was a nice effort looking toward the Oaks.

Both Jim Byrne (Kebede) and Michael Cahill (Queen Of The Wands) also indicated their mounts were now looking for further.

THE BETTING

A keen betting affair. Imposing Lass was best backed early, but good money also arrived for Circular and Falkenberg, meaning UBET’s loss on the race was only a small one.

BIG BETS

Imposing Lass $1800, $1,500 (x2) @ $3.50 & $1,000 (x3) @ $3.00

Falkenberg $1500 @ $4.50

Race 5

Peter Robl notched his first Stakes win as a trainer when Eloping led them a merry dance

Second-placed Miss Cover Girl was short in live betting after cantering up to the leader in the straight.

THE QUOTE

‘’I thought we had that,’’ trainer Kelly Schweida (Miss Cover Girl). “We just ambled up to the leader and I thought that was going to be the end of that. But the leader just kept running.’’

THE BETTING

Just about every runner in the race met with support, but Miss Cover Girl at $6.50 jumped the best backed in terms of money held and bets taken with UBET.

Winner Eloping was $14 into $11 late but was a profitable outcome for the bookies.

Race 6

Coolring may have been costly for punters at Toowoomba last month, but those ones who stuck solid recouped it and then some in the Prime Minister’s Cup.

Coolring was officially $8 into $4.80 on track, but better was offered earlier in the week.

It completed a winning double for Bjorn Baker, who is building an imposing record with his Queensland raids.

Blake Shinn said runner-up Snippets Land had “every chance”, while Luke Dittman said Worthy Cause “wants more ground” after looming to win, but being one paced in the run to the line.”

THE BETTING

UBET managed to avoid defeat on Coolring, with Worthy Cause accounting for a third of their fixed odds hold on the race.

BIG BETS

Snippets Land $1000 @ $8; Coolring $1000 @ $8.50, $1000 @ $8, $1250 @ $7; Jumbo Prince $1500 @ $6.50; Worthy Cause $1000ew @ $4/$1.75

Race 7 Hollindale Stakes

Team Hawkes was right when they said the bookies had it wrong. And wasn’t the training team jubilant when Leebaz made it back to back wins in the Hollindale Stakes

‘’It’s been one hell of a 10 days,’’ Wayne Hawkes said (reflecting on their amazing recent ride with Chautauqua’s win in Hong Kong).

Second-placed favourite Hauraki had his chance and was a money muncher yet again, despite looking like the winner in the straight.

Jockey Blake Shinn (third-placed Volkstok’n’barrell) said the stayer ran well, considering he had to niggle him along to maintain his spot in the run.

THE BETTING

Largely unfancied by punters, $31 out to $35, Leebaz ran the shortest route home to go back-to-back in the Hollindale to continue the run of rough results.

Hauraki was backed from the get go; the Godolphin-runner was $3 into $2.90 before easing late to $3.

Stablemate, It’s Somewhat, $9 to $4.40, was best backed to beat the favourite but didn’t deliver on the market move.

Originally published as Gold Coast Rewind: Nathan Exelby and Ben Dorries look back at winners and losers from Hollindale Stakes Day