Last week was certainly one to remember for the team, with 5 winners in 3 days, including success in the Group 3 Craven and exciting performances from Newbury.
First up was DARK THIRTY in a 6f class 2 handicap at Newmarket. It was his first run of the season, so we were all pleasantly surprised to see him really get stuck in and put his neck out to the line. He has always been a smart type that has done well for us and his owners over the past couple of seasons, so it was nice to see that he has trained on well into this season and kick started it in exactly the right way.
Next up was HAATEM in the Group 3 Craven over a mile. He was sent off at a surprisingly large price considering the form of his 2-year-old season. He broke well from the gates and Sean had him in an ideal handy position throughout the race, and he showed an excellent turn of foot when Sean asked him to go on. It was an excellent confident ride, with Sean always knowing that he had enough horse underneath him. He has always been a horse that we have thought a lot of and his win on Thursday showed us that his entry in the 2000 Guineas is more than justified. It was a commanding performance against some smart horses to win by 3 and a half lengths. This was another exciting win for us, as it puts us in the very fortunate position of having 2 live chances in the big one in 2 weeks’ time.
The Friday of the Greenham meeting saw out first 2-year-old winner of the season, with HAWAIIAN winning in fine style. This was an exciting performance as we have liked him from his homework, but it is always an unknown. We were confident he would run well off the back of the other 2-year-old performances so far this season, with The Actor running a great race to finish 2nd at Newmarket, but with the rain setting in and making the going testing at best, it was more than encouraging to see him come home nicely with a hands and heels ride from Sean. There are a few different options in the pipeline for him now, so we will see how he comes out of this as to where we go next.
VOYAGE made an impressive debut over 1m2f in a class 2 at Newbury. He jumped off a little keen, but Pat managed to tuck him in just behind the leaders and settle into a nice rhythm. Pat pulled him out with half a mile to go and he cruised to the front easily, just being shaken up in the final furlong to win comfortably by a length and 3/4s. This was a great start to his career with patience paying off for owner Julie Wood.
Last but certainly not least was STAR STYLE in the last. This was another very impressive debut performance where she made all and stretched clear of the rest of the field very convincingly. She has always been very nice at home, but is a big filly so she has needed all of her 2-year-old season to come into herself and fill out. She is another exciting prospect and holds an entry for the 1000 Guineas which would not be out of the question after such a commanding performance last week. Another nice horse for long term owner and friend Julie Wood for the season ahead.