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O'Shea's Saint On The Eve Of Better Things

By Ray Hickson

Trainer John O’Shea is banking on the wet track prowess of Doncaster Mile winner Sacred Falls to flow through to his daughter All Saints’ Eve when she resumes at Randwick on Saturday.

Trainer John O'Shea (Pic: Bradley Photos)

The promising four-year-old hasn’t been exposed to a heavy track in her six starts to date but O’Shea is comfortable kicking her off in the Everest Carnival On Sale Handicap (1400m).

Sacred Falls was a dual Doncaster winner, 2013-14, and both those Randwick mile wins came on very heavy tracks.

“Being by Sacred Falls she should get through the ground but whether she is going to handle a heavy 10 is another issue,’’ he said.

“I think she would get through it okay. She’s strengthened up a little bit.

“We have a mare that usually goes better second-up but we’ve never run her first-up at seven (1400m) either. She’s going along nicely.”

O’Shea said All Saints’ Eve’s two recent barrier trials on heavy tracks point to how well she has returned since running a close third in the Group 3 Kembla Grange Classic (1600m) back in March.

She was the $2.40 favourite with TAB on Thursday on the back of those trials and O’Shea does have some black type ambitions for the looming spring carnival.

“It’s a reflection of her maturity and where she is fitting in in life,” he said of the trials.

“We tried to bring her back a little early and have her where she can get some runs on the board before she has to step up in grade.

“We’ve got to go through the grades as best we can with a view to running in races like the Tibbie (1400m at Newcastle in September), that’s withing the realms of possibility.

“And she’s a mare that can run a mile so the Angst (at Randwick in October) later in the year she wouldn’t be out of her depth in either.”

A Golden Rose mission isn’t on O’Shea’s agenda for promising colt Bravado but the Randwick trainer is quietly confident he can trouble some of the fringe contenders for next month’s Group 1.

Bravado takes his place in the Group 3 $161,000 Quincy Seltzer Up & Coming Stakes (1300m) on the back of his closing third behind Smart Image at Rosehill three weeks ago.

O’Shea said he feels recent racing will be a big asset and expects Bravado, $12, to take some advantage of drawing favourably for the first time in his career.

“It was a good run second-up, we had to go back a lot further than we would have liked because he jumped too well,’’ he said.

“He’s drawn well so we have a view of not having him as far back, hopefully he can get to midfield without too much stress.


All Saints' Eve's latest trial at Kensington on July 31

“It’s going to be a testing track and a race where there looks sufficient enough speed for the race to be genuinely run.”

Kiwi mare Rondinella has her first run for O’Shea in the Spring Preview Handicap (1400m) and he speaks enthusiastically about her long term prospects in the spring.

The six-year-old, $17 with TAB, is dual Group 1 placed including the 2019 Tancred Stakes and while Saturday is a starting point O’Shea expects to see a glimpse of what’s to come.

“Everything she has done for us has been excellent,” he said.

“The progeny of Ocean Park are effective in the ground and hopefully by that stage of proceedings on Saturday it’s not a disadvantage to be drawn wide.

“We’re really happy with her, maybe not Saturday but at some stage of the spring she will have something to offer.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday's Randwick meeting

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