Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Bad luck cost Maungatahi the chance of winning last Friday week when he was badly blocked for a clear passage in the final lap. He still had plenty in reserve when he was blocked for a run in the home straight and finished sixth behind Chivalry.
The six-year-old gets a good chance to return to the winning list for trainer-reinsman Dylan Egerton-Green at his fourth start in his current campaign when he begins from barrier four in the 2130m North Coast Fibreglass Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Maungatahi is a versatile pacer who has earned $92,066 from nine wins and 14 placings from 42 starts, and his main rival could be Showpony, who will start out wide at barrier eight.
Showpony was a brilliant Gloucester Park winner three starts ago, and if he reproduces that form, he will take plenty of beating. He will be driven by his regular reinsman Aiden De Campo, who has taken over the preparation of the handsome six-year-old.
Ideal Tomado, who will start from the outside barrier in the field of nine, will have friends after catching the eye with a fast-finishing sixth behind stablemate Lamandier last Friday night.
Noted frontrunner Longreach Bay will be suited by the No. 1 barrier in the 2130m Hoist Solutions Pace in which he will be handled by De Campo.
Longreach Bay has been freshened up by trainer Peter King and will be having his first start for seven weeks. He has been unplaced at his past three starts after he led and won at a 1.57.2 rate over 2130m on November 1. He dashed over the middle quarters in 28.1sec. and 28.6sec. before covering the final 400m in 29.4sec. and beating Awaitinginstructions by one and a half lengths.
The most recent occasion he began from the No. 1 barrier was ten starts ago when he set the pace and won from Rock Me Over over 2130m on September 6.
Longreach Bay is likely to give the expected favourite and last-start winner Storyteller something to catch. Storyteller was untroubled to lead from barrier one and win from Blaze On last Friday night. He faces a sterner test this week.
Teenager Liam Elliott has excellent prospects of winning the $20,000 Albany Cup over 2690m at Albany on Saturday night when he drives the Ryan Bell-trained Hillview Bondi, who will start from barrier three on the back line.
Hillview Bondi will be making his first appearance in Albany after his past 44 starts have been at Gloucester Park. He has earned $193,989 from 19 wins and 20 placings from 89 starts. Two starts ago he set the pace for Joey Suvaljko and won at Gloucester Park, and at his previous outing he led and finished a close second to star pacer Lavra Joe.