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By Ray Hickson

As far as being a flagbearer goes, Lunaite couldn’t be doing a better job for now Port Macquarie based trainer Paul Snowden.

Trainer Paul Snowden (Pic: Grant Guy)

She’s his only runner so far since he established his own stable on the Mid North Coast last September and brings the trainer back to his former base at Randwick on Saturday to chase a hat-trick in the Quayclean Handicap (1300m).

In partnership with his father Peter, which ended at the completion of last season, Snowden trained 20 Group 1 winners including the 2016 Golden Slipper with Capitalist and won the first two editions of the TAB Everest with Redzel in 2017 and 2018.

Lunaite has put a combined just under eight lengths on her rivals in two Newcastle wins in May, both over 1250m on heavy tracks, and Snowden said the time is right to give her a test.

“She’s doing an awesome job, she’s pretty much the billboard for me at the moment,’’ he said.

“I’ve tried to give her little wins, not putting her out of her comfort zone. She’s my advertisement and she’s going terrific.”

The three-year-old was a $250,000 yearling and she started her career with Chris Waller making her debut back in March last year.

Snowden said he didn’t hesitate when asked by Newgate boss Henry Field to take her on but he’s not been filled in completely about the circumstances which led to her sale, online for just $15,000 last November.

All he knew was she had a 'bar' on her for barrier manners and there was work to be done to get her back to the races.

“I didn’t ask what it was, just said ‘yep no worries’,'' Snowden said.

"She was the first horse I’d taken and I didn’t know the history, they still haven’t told me the full story. There was plenty of depth behind her history, she was barred at the gates for quite some time.''

The filly's woes began when she was scratched at the barriers from a trial at Rosehill on August 6 and ordered to trial again.

She failed to have the stewards embargo lifted in three subsequent trials through to mid-October, finally having the restriction removed after two trials for Snowden.

“There’s over 12 months of racing she’s missed because of this and being re-educated, which didn’t work because she still had a bar on her when they bought her,'' he said.

“I’ve tried to bring everything I’ve been taught over the years. I’m the only one that touches her, the only one who rides her and we get along good.

“We’ve worked with her and got to where we are today, three starts for two wins and a second.”

A feature of Lunaite’s two Newcastle wins, in the latest she easily accounted for last week's Midway winner Motoscafo, has been the speed she shown to put herself up on the pace and that’s something that will be needed at Randwick.

But Snowden said he likes having drawn out with the filly as it reduces the time she’s likely to be standing in the gates and it suits her running style.

“There’s just little things on game day you need to go your way and she’s a nice free striding filly that finds the right spot,’’ he said.

“I’ve been keen to get her up to seven furlongs, I think she will really come into her own when we get to that area.

“She can control or just sit off a controlling speed and just keep building momentum.

“I’ve had her in work since November 13 and here we are in June and she’s only just got right, I think she has another run to bring her right on to where she needs to be fitness wise.

“She just needed a bit of time, was a bit immature, but she’s had that now and hopefully we can keep knocking them off.”

Lunaite wins at Newcastle on May 26

Snowden, who was wading a tried horse called Cluedo in a nearby river while speaking, has around 20 horses on his hands at the moment including a number of rising two-year-olds.

“I’ve got about seven yearlings here, three are on their third time in the stable,’’ he said.

“They’re Magic Millions yearlings and I’m hoping to get them to the official two-year-old trials in September.”

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