Palmerston winner Eight Bills retired

PALMERSTON Sprint winner Eight Bills has been retired after suffering a pulled suspensory muscle during trackwork at Flemington.

Races.Cox Plate Race Day.Race 2 City Jeep H'cap. No.9 'Eight Bills' ridden by Dean Yendall gets up to beat 'Henwood' ridden by Glen Boss.Picture:Ian Currie

PALMERSTON Sprint winner Eight Bills has been retired.

The nine-year-old gelding suffered a pulled suspensory muscle during trackwork at Flemington on Saturday.

It is a sad end for the son of Octagonal, who enjoyed an impressive career race record of 11 wins from 50 starts.

He won in style over 1000m at Moonee Valley on November 25 when ridden by Victorian jockey Dean Yendall, who rode Eight Bills to victory in the $135,000 bet365 Palmerston Sprint (1200m) at Fannie Bay on August 2.

His last start on December 6 – when he finished third at Sandown – proved to be his last. Trainer Stephen Brown, who praised the veteran sprinter, said after a veterinary examination it was obvious that Eight Bills had run his last race. “He will be going to a good home,” Brown said.

Eight Bills gave Brown his third Palmerston Sprint win after Razamataz and Lord Harold saluted in 1998 and 2004 respectively.

Meanwhile Chris Nash, the partner of Brown’s daughter Alana, is pleased with the progress that his five-year-old gelding Design For Life is making since relocating south from the Top End. The lightly raced son of Flying Spur has had four wins from 14 starts, three at Fanny Bay.

He was earmarked to run at Flemington on Saturday over 1600 metres but that race has now been transferred to Sandown on Boxing Day.

“There is a listed race (the Lord Stakes) over 1600m at Sandown as well as a benchmark over the same distance,” Nash said. “I will probably nominate for both and wait and see.”

Nash has been riding Design for Life in trackwork but another jockey rode him earlier this week at Flemington with positive reports.

Trainer Melinda Boothby is gearing up for a big day at Fannie Bay on Saturday if early nominations are any indication. There are 42 nomin­ations for the last meeting of 2015 with Boothby naming three – Group Hug, Apala and Dublin Lad.

Group Hug has been put forward for the Benchmark 78 Handicap (1200m) but faces stiff opposition from Cheville, Warrego Melody, Ornithologist and Courting Magic.