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By Ray Hickson

Matt Vella has already done the job asked of him with lightly raced mare Twinkling Star so he’s raised the bar in search of a breakthrough city win for horse and trainer at Canterbury on Wednesday.

The Hawkesbury mentor only ever prepares a small team, so runners in town are rare, as his major focus is in the breaking and pre-training world but he’s occasionally given a project horse by Sir Owen Glenn.

Twinkling Star is one such project, she was winless in six starts for Michael Freedman and was sent to Vella by her owner to see if he could get her into winning form.

The four-year-old, $7 with TAB on Tuesday, has responded by winning two of her three starts for him.

“This filly has kept progressing so the next step for her is to go to town and see if we can get some city quality on her page,’’ Vella said.

“The initial plan was let’s win a race. Then she won a race and I ran her second-up and she was unlucky.

“I ran her again and she just bolted in. It’s a step up but I think she is going well enough to run well, she’s not a moral she’s a good each-way chance.”

Maquisa runs fourth at Kensington on August 27

Vella has worked with Sir Owen Glenn for 12 years and he’s either educated or pre-trained all his horses in that time.

He’s not taking Twinkling Star’s task in the Ole Kirk @ Vinery Stud Handicap (1200m) lightly, while she brings career best form into the race he recognises the challenges of meeting progressive opposition.

“You’re going to a 64 in town and you’re meeting horses coming up through the ranks,’’ he said.

“To help her page winning another provincial race isn’t going to do anything. She needs that city form. Even if she doesn’t win it doesn’t mean she’s not going to win a city race in the next 12 months.

“She’s going as well as I can have her, she trialled well the other day behind Apex and he came out the other night and bolted in.”

It’s been six weeks since Twinkling Star’s easy win as a $1.75 chance at Hawkesbury so as Vella mentioned he sent her to the trials on November 5.

He does have a small query over the 1200m under 60kg but she did place at the trip at Kembla Grange and at 1300m at Hawkesbury in March.

“I am unsure whether the 1200m is going to suit her, I think Canterbury is the right track to try it out but I think she loves the speed on where she can sit midfield,’’ he said.

“She’ll hopefully just jump straight into the one-one.

“I’m meeting a bit harder competition but she’s not going to disgrace herself. I’m going there with the mindset that she’s going to run very well."

All the fields, form and replays for Wednesday’s Canterbury meeting