NO CIGAR, BUT ANOTHER STRONG SHOWING BY NIKAU SPUR FINISHING RUNNER-UP IN THE TOOWOOMBA CUP

By Graham Potter | Saturday, September 23, 2023

The Corey and Kylie trained Nikau Spur had certainly earned his stripes coming into the Toowoomba Cup, his big home-town feature race which was contested over 2000m on September 23.

Carrying the distinctive KO Racing silks, the seven-year-old son of Proisir had won three of his last four starts prior to facing the starter in the Toowoomba Cup.

Those wins had come over distances ranging from 1815m to 2200m, so the Cup distance fell neatly within his comfortable stroke zone and bookmakers were not keen to chance their arm with him, sending him off as a clearcut $2.50 favourite after being punted in from $3.80 … with only two other runners in the fourteen horse field … Heleva Deel ($8 – a last start winner at Eagle Farm) and Namazi ($9.50) – the Townsville Cup winner) quoted at odds under $10.

There was a jockey change on Nikau Spur. There was nothing sinister in that as Mark Du Plessis, Nikau Spur’s regular pilot, was unavailable, so Ben Thompson, another top rider, was handed the reins.

Nikau Spur was surrounded by horses in midfield as the runners passed the winning post for the first time. Thompson then briefly settled him in seventh place as the field left the home straight with the $13 chance Military Gamber, who Damien Thornton had pushed forward from a wide draw, coming across to take up the lead.

Nikau Spur was caught three wide at that stage, and he was briefly as much as five lengths behind Military Gambler as the leader got on with it, taking the field towards the back straight.

Thompson wasn’t happy with that position, and he elected to take Nikau Spur forward, moving fluently up to third place by the 1200m mark, now just two lengths off the leader, but still caught three wide.

From there, Thompson didn’t rush things, but between the 1100m and 1000m mark he improved Nikau Spur’s position once again, moving up alongside Military Gamble, sitting just three-quarters of a length to the leader’s outside … perfectly placed to strike.

The problem for Thompson and Nikau Spur though was that Thornton was rating Military Gamble superbly, saving something for the home straight and the field was relatively stacked up … only six length first to last … on the approach to the home turn.

Just before straightening, both Thornton and Thompson got very busy in the saddle.

A one length advantage to Military Gambler at the top of the straight became two lengths when Military Gambler gave the kick that Thornton had been keeping in reserve.

Nikau Spur also kicked on strongly, but as well as he matched Military Gambler all the way down the home straight, he was doing so giving the Chris Munce trained runner a start.

Although Nikau Spur finished within a length of Military Gambler at the line, that deficit proved to be too difficult to peg back, leaving Nikau Spur having to settle for a second place that was full of merit, both to the credit of the horse himself and to the stable and connections who have clearly kept a happy horse firing so well over a fair period of time.

Since July 29 Nikau Spur has raced five time for thee wins, a second and a third placing … quietly taking his prize-money earnings to a very healthy $344 007.
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One race after the Toowoomba Cup, the Corey and Kylie Geran trained Our Magnus finished unplaced in the Weetwood, but the five-year-old was far from disgraced when coming home in fifth spot, 3.70 lengths behind the duelling All That Pizzazz and Yellow Brick who went to the line locked together in a thrilling finish.

That translated into another pleasing run which effectively was right in line with Our Magnus’s established pattern of always giving his all and seldom running a bad race, even behind the likes of All That Pizzazz, who has a fifty percent winning strike rate from twelve starts, and Yellow Brick, who also a six-time winner and who has yet to finish out of the first three places.

In ten starts for Team Geran, Our Magnus has won four times, finished second on a further three occasions … a proud record.

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