DOOM AUG 22 - SHADOW BUSTER GETS UP ON THE LINE

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Doomben, August 22, 2009.
Track - Good 2. Rail - out 2.5m.
3yo QTIS Handicap - 1615m. Time: 1-38.47.
1 Shadow Buster; 2 Charmingly; 3 Show A Lion Heart.

The Troy Hall trained Shadow Buster came into the race a Maiden and went home a winner of a 3yo QTIS Handicap. This was the fourth start for the grey who handled the dual step up in both class and distance with some aplomb to score in eye-catching fashion.

For the fourth time in as many starts Shadow Buster had a different jockey. Apprentice Michael Hellyer was given the reins and he turned in a performance which underlined his growing confidence and also showed how confidence translates into superior results.

Hellyer settled Shadow Buster in mid-field initially, but then let the gelding relax to race worse than midfield until Hellyer asked Shadow Buster to start making up ground out wide in the sweep to the turn.

Turning five to six wide into the straight in seventh position some five lengths off the lead, there was plenty of work for Shadow Buster to do in the run home. While Shadow Buster settled to his task, the two time winner Show A Lion Heart made an early dash for home and Charmingly made up ground rapidly along the inside running rail. Shadow Buster gradually closed on the two leaders and arrived just in time to snare Charmingly in the shadow of the post to claim a well judged victory.

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Troy Hall: “We thought we’d be third or fourth today, but they went so hard out the gates. That was a good ride by the kid (Michael Hellyer). I just said, don’t bustle him ... ride him where he is comfortable and that’s what he has done.

“It was a good ride. He got him going before the corner. The horse is only a little bloke so I said, keep him out of trouble, you know. It was a nice effort. Now the horse has dropped him on the way back (to the unsaddling enclosure).

“I’ve got a yearling ... I mean a two-year-old full brother to him and a filly born the other day - a full sister to him - so that’s very nice. They are a good breed this breed. They‘re tough horses ... amongst the toughest horses I’ve had.

“We liked him from day one. He is a little bit immature still. Katsidis rode him a couple of runs back and he said he is going to be a lovely horse in six months time, but we thought we would just keep educating him. This was going to be his last run this time in so he’ll go to the paddock a winner now. I think he is going to measure up to bigger and better things.”

Apprentice jockey Michael Hellyer (who was dislodged from Shadow Buster coming back to scale): “The bugger. They told me just watch him going to the gates because he can whip around to the left. Anyway, he didn’t do it going to the gates, but when we’d gone past the winning post I just stood up nice and relaxed and let him come back of his own accord and then he just went straight underneath me. He caught me by surprise.

“He is a lovely horse. He is a good six to twelve months being a very nice horse. This was basically going to be his last start before going out, but Troy (Hall) told me that he’s got big wraps on him. He’s shown raw ability and he could go on from that when he comes back in a couple of months.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Shadow Buster): 21.00 out to 26.00.
Favourite (Pharonic): 4.20 out to 4.40. Finished twelfth.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Mr Tracey was declared a late scratching at 2.29 p.m. by order of the stewards acting on veterinary advice when that horse was found to be sore in the off-foreleg after it had knuckled over during its preliminary. Ideological (J. Taylor) began awkwardly. Charmingly (S. Katsidis) was slow to begin. Panningen (J. Byrne) raced in restricted room rounding the first turn when racing to the inside of Pharonic (M. Speers). Sanderson (M. Cahill) and Craiglea King (A. Pattillo) raced wide in the early and middle stages. Panningen had a tendency to lay out for a short distance leaving the 800m.

M. Speers, the rider of Pharonic, stated that the horse failed to show its customary early speed and only travelled fairly throughout the event and near the 600m when he asked the filly for an effort he became concerned with the horse's action and due to this concern retired Pharonic from the race in the straight. A post-race veterinary examination of Pharonic revealed that the filly was showing signs of soreness in front. Trainer L. Birchley will be advised that a veterinary certificate of fitness will be required prior to the horse's next start.

J. Byrne reported that Panningen hung out badly in the middle stages resulting in him being placed at a disadvantage for this part of the race. J. Byrne added that once the horse entered the straight, although Panningen still had a tendency to lay out, he was able to place the horse under pressure and it ran home reasonably well. Trainer Brian Smith advised stewards that he would spell the horse immediately and undertook to trial Panningen before resuming racing.