The main focus for the day was on the happenings on the Gold Coast with the Magic Millions meeting, however Caulfield was not entirely devoid of interest. Fields were generally small, not surprising given that we’ve had a lot of racing recently.

JYE McNEIL

Jye had endured a tough week, weighing in light on a winner at Sandown, leading to the automatic disqualification of the horse. However he has been in great form of late and that continued at Caulfield where he saluted on the winners of the first two races.

First up was the 2yo The Seductress, trained by Jason Warren. There was money for a couple of first starters, however race experience prevailed, with The Seductress now having won two from three. She is a daughter of Snitzel (whose stock were in demand at the Magic Millions) out of the General Nediym mare Five Star Belle.

Next up was Anaphora in the fillies and mares handicap over 1600m. She won by the narrowest of margins as McNeil drove her between Yellen (outside) and Prepee (inside with a well timed run. Anaphora managed to time the bob of the head perfectly (you can just see her white nose in the image below).

TOM MARQUAND

Arriving in Australia, after having recently being compared to champion jockey Ryan Moore is bound to cause a stir. However it did not deter trainer Richard Hannon from making the comparison. Marquand, the 17-year-old won the champion apprentice trophy in his maiden season last year, posting 68 wins.

Marquand had his first ride in Australia at Caulfield, on the David Hayes/Tom Dabernig trained Tasbeeh in a heat of the Summer Championship (1800M). Settling his mount in an ideal position in the middle of the small field, Marquand bought him down the middle of the track in the run home to record a strong but narrow win.

 

It’s great to see riders form other jurisdictions here, it highlights the different riding styles used. As you can see from the photos he gets high in the saddle and urges his mount forward. Australian riders always seem to be lower in the saddle. It’s always interesting to see different methods applied to the same task.