Exceptional Team Hawkes sprinter Headwater rockets into Golden Slipper contention

THE chances of Team Hawkes securing successive Golden Slippers soared with the brilliant debut win of Headwater at Moonee Valley on Saturday.

Melbourne Racing

THE chances of Team Hawkes securing successive Golden Slippers soared with the brilliant debut win of Headwater at Moonee Valley on Saturday.

Headwater looked liked he was worth every cent of his $500,000 price tag when he bolted home by three lengths, producing swift sectionals.

And TAB Fixed Odds price assessors reacted immediately by installing Headwater on the second line of betting at $8 behind Ottoman ($6) for the $3.5 million Golden Slipper at Rosehill on March 21.

But Hall of Fame trainer John Hawkes isn’t getting carried away with the Headwater hype.

“With two-year-olds, they are here today and gone tomorrow — you can’t get too far ahead of yourself,’’ Hawkes said.

“It is all about how they cope with training and racing.

“Headwater did a good job at his first start but he didn’t beat what I would call the A-graders.

“The pleasing thing is he has come through that race well. He’s a nice colt and we will give him a little break now then have a think about what we will do with him in the New Year.’’

Trainer John Hawkes watches on at Flemington. Picture: Colleen Petch

TAB’s spokesman Glenn Munsie said Headwater showed enough on debut to suggest he has the potential to give the Hawkes stable a repeat Golden Slipper triumph after their win with Mossfun last season.

“Headwater has a huge advantage being with Team Hawkes,’’ Munsie said.

“It is the Hawkes stable’s method to give all their horses preparations in Sydney and Melbourne so this colt will be educated galloping in both directions.

“John Hawkes mastered the art of shifting horses between Sydney and Melbourne when he was at Crown Lodge and has kept that going now he is training with his sons so Headwater should have no problems racing in the Sydney direction.’’

The Hawkes stable also has another boom youngster, Sooboog, prominent in early Golden Slipper betting at $15.

Sooboog, a $1.5 million yearling purchase, was second at his only start to Vancouver in the Breeders Plate and will return to training at Hawkes’s Rosehill stable base today.

Hawkes also revealed that Mossfun will resume training today along with another potential autumn carnival candidate, Leebaz.

Jockey James McDonald celebrates winning the Golden Slipper on Mossfun. Picture: Toby Zerna

Mossfun hasn’t raced since her Golden Slipper triumph back in April while Leebaz, a Doomben Cup runner-up last season, had only two starts during spring including his game fourth in the Emirates Stakes behind Hucklebuck.

“Mossfun was flattened by a virus at the start of the season but when she had recovered, it was too late in the spring to bring her back to the racetrack.

“She has done well during her spell and is fine now,’’ Hawkes said.

“But we are not targeting any races in particular with her, we want to see how she comes up first.

“We don’t really plan for big races weeks and months ahead — we don’t work that way.’’

GOLDEN SLIPPER BETTING

$6 Ottoman

$8 Furnaces, Headwater

$11 Fontiton, Paceman, Vancouver

$15 Calaverite, Perignon, Sampeah, Sooboog

Odds: TAB