Aquanita at home and ready to shine in Diamond
Story By Jason Hickson
Wednesday, 20 February 2008:  | | Marveen returns to scale at Flemington |
Marveen, prepared by Robert Smerdon, and the Tony Vasil-trained Burgeis, are both at $12.00 in latest markets from Sportingbet for the $1 million race on their home turf.
Marveen fared best at yesterday's barrier draw landing gate three for rider Vlad Duric.
The filly, by champion USA sprinter Orientate, has had four starts for a win and three minors.
Two starts back she scored a strong win in the Listed Merson Cooper Stakes then went for a spell before resuming with an eye-catching effort when just beaten in the Blue Diamond Preview, charging home to miss by a nose behind Siennas Fury.
“From the good draw she won't be forced to go right back and hopefully can get a good run around midfield,” Smerdon said.
“She's going really well and we've always thought she would need 1200m.”
Part-owner of Burgeis, Frank Tagg, flew down to Melbourne for the barrier draw yesterday and would have been disappointed picking up barrier 12, but the stable expect a similar run to last start – hopefully with a better result.
The $160,000 yearling rounded off her Blue Diamond campaign in the Blue Diamond Prelude, where she drew the same gate, went back to the tail and came with a big bust down the outside to finish third behind Believe N Succeed.
Prior to that she had scored an arrogant win at Moonee Valley on debut where she circled the field to run away to score then didn't have the clearest of runs at her second start when a close-up fifth in the Preview.
“She's drawn the same gate as last start so at this stage she'd probably run a similar race,” Vasil's assistant trainer Simon Miller said.
“There's usually a lot of pace in the race so hopefully that's the case where she can sit off them and stay out of trouble before getting home late.
“Tony (Vasil) rode her on Tuesday in her final decent hit-out and said she felt great and had really come on since the last run.
“The extra trip should help her and she will be strong to the line.”
Danny Brereton, who has been aboard at all three starts, has the ride again.
He won the Blue Diamond Stakes just over 10 years ago when piloting the Lee Freedman-trained Knowledge to success from barrier 15 – that galloping coming off a fourth in the Diamond Prelude.
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