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By Ray Hickson

It was never Craig Martin’s plan to put Tavros on a Big or Little Dance path but the in-form five-year-old has made it to Randwick with the chance to give the Tamworth trainer his biggest win.

Trainer Craig Martin (Pic: Bradley Photos).

Tavros, one of just seven horses in Martin’s stable, earned his spot in the $750,000 Little Dance (1600m) on Tuesday with a close second in the Dubbo Cup and third in the Coonamble Cup at his past two starts.

An untimely injury meant Tavros had to be put on ice after a brilliant win on his home track in June and that was what started him on the road to the Little Dance.

Martin was planning a Queensland campaign that didn’t work out timing wise after he got back on track winning the Moree Cup in August but he’s more than happy to be where he is now.

“He’s a bit of a playful fellow and he slipped and hit the back of his tendon so I took the precaution and backed off him,’’ Martin said.

“I had him scanned and decided to wait until the swelling went down.

“He had three weeks off and I was trying to find a race to go to, he wasn’t eligible for a Highway, and I saw the Moree Cup come up and we went there.

“The Big Dance and Little Dance were never on the radar.

"I always planned to get him up to Brisbane and race him over 2000m but after he won at Moree there was nothing for him in Brisbane.”

The 57-year-old trainer set his sights on the Dubbo Cup when heading north was off the table and he felt Tavros was a bit unlucky not to beat Cristal Clear in that feature.

Cristal Clear went on to run sixth in the Golden Eagle last weekend.

He said with the benefit of knowing what’s happened since, that effort has him right in the mix.

“The winner had a soft run in the Dubbo Cup, we didn’t,’’ he said.

“We had to take our medicine, we got into a bad spot and kept getting pushed wider and wider. Full credit to Ashley (Morgan), he had to get going and the horse ran out of his skin.

“I did think about after Dubbo going to 2000m in the Taree Cup but with the Little Dance in mind I had to go to Coonamble.

“It was three weeks to the Little Dance and that suited him down to the ground.”

Tavros, $4.60 with TAB on Monday, will drop to 52kg with Anna Roper taking the ride and Martin said he’d like to make some use of drawing well in the big field.

The gelding has been to Randwick before, he ran a close fifth in an 1800m Highway back in February, and Martin has his fingers crossed for the track to be holding up come race seven.

“I don’t want him going back too far from that gate, we’ll try to be a little bit more positive,’’ he said.

“He might be half a stride tardy out but if he can muster speed and get up there he’ll switch off.

Tavros runs third in the Coonamble Cup

“I know the horse is well, his last five starts have been enormous.

“He’s either won or been beaten less than a length so he knows how to hit the line. He’s got a luxury weight, obviously the toppie is a very good horse but he’s giving me 10kg.”

All the fields, form and replays for Tuesday's Big Dance meeting at Randwick