By Ray Hickson
Trainer Scott Cameron warns that little attention should be paid to what appears to be an ordinary lead up by Elouyou to his assignment at Rosehill on Saturday.
Trainer Scott Cameron (Pic: Racing Photos).
It’s been six weeks since the gelding beat one horse home as a $4.20 chance at Sandown but Cameron said there were genuine excuses for his below par performance that he largely contributes to the track condition.
Add to that a last placing in a tickover jump out and you’d think there’d be question marks hanging over him going into the Foundation Female Member Handicap (1200m) but Cameron says given the heavy ground he doesn’t have any.
Just over a year ago Elouyou made his only appearance in Sydney, it was at Rosehill on a heavy track and he tracked the leader breaking clear for an easy win.
“We’ve been waiting for it for a while, for wet tracks and we don’t really get many here,’’ he said.
“I just think he’s a very good wet tracker so we just look for them now.
“He has been in work a long time but we do space his runs so he’ll be coming up in good order and we’ll see how we go.
“He’s got good gate speed, puts himself in the first couple and gives himself every chance.”
The five-year-old, who opened $6 with TAB on Wednesday, has won two races on good tracks but Cameron said as he’s worked through the grades his ability on a wet track has been an edge he doesn’t have on firmer going.
He'd won his previous two starts on soft ground comfortably, so what was it about the Sandown track that Elouyou didn’t appreciate?
Cameron said his horse wasn’t the only one expected to fire in the race who didn’t put in on ground he described as ‘quite tired’ and uneven.
“They’d had a meeting on the Wednesday and the Saturday and it was quite choppy ground,’’ he said.
“He pulled up a bit rough so we gave him a freshen up.
“Joe Pride’s (Accredited) went terrible in that race and he came out and won next start back up in Sydney, the horse that ran last (Dashing) ended up winning the Swan Hill Cup.
“They went at a strong pace the whole way, I don’t know whether it’s just a weird form race.”
Elouyou contested a jump out at Flemington on June 13 and after jumping well he was eased out to last and followed the field around but Cameron said that was entirely by design.
“I’m happy with the freshen up he’s had,’’ he said.
Elouyou wins at Rosehill in June last year
“He just had a very soft trial a couple of weeks ago, we pulled him out the back and had a very good hold of him, and his work has been good since.
“If you watch the jump out you’d think he didn’t go that good but he was just bowling around.”
All the fields, form and replays for Saturday’s Rosehill meeting