Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Champion reinsman Gary Hall Jnr is confident that Three Rumours will break a sequence of three consecutive second placings by winning the Retravision Online Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Hall drove Three Rumours for the first time when the six-year-old mare, at her first start for Ravenswood trainer Nathan Turvey, finished a half-head second to the pacemaker Rumour Has It over 2130m last Friday night.
Three Rumours began from the outside in the field of five and she raced in the breeze, about a length behind Rumour Has It before finishing with great determination.
This week Three Rumours will start from the No. 6 barrier in a field of seven, with Rumour Has It at barrier five.
“If I have to sit outside Rumour Has It again, I reckon Three Rumours will beat her, based on last week’s race,” said Hall. “I will probably not be able to get to the front (early), while Rumour Has It is likely to have to work a bit to get to the front.
“I will be aiming to drive Three Rumours more aggressively this week. It was a ‘be on me next time’ run by Three Rumours last week.”
Rumour Has It, trained by Debra Lewis, is in excellent form with three wins from four starts after resuming after a ten-month absence.
“Rumour Has It is running very well,” said reinsman Chris Lewis. “I’m pretty happy with her, and she should be in the mix.”
There is likely to be a spirited battle for the early lead, with speedy beginners Queeninthecorner (barrier one), Rocknroll Lass (two), Beyond The Sea (three) and Sovrana (four) all possessing excellent gate speed.
Reinsman Kyle Harper said that the Murray Lindau-trained Beyond The Sea was capable of improving on her first-up fourth behind Rumour Has It last Friday night.
Sovrana led from barrier five and went on to win from Mighthavtime over 2130m last Friday week, while the Turvey-trained Rocknroll Lass (Kyle Symington) should be prominent from the No. 2 barrier at her first appearance since October 27 when she made most of the running and finished a close second to Turn The Page over 2130m.
Turvey and Symington should combine to win the SEFS The Asset Finance Specialists Handicap over 2503m with the 20m backmarker Chal Patch, who drops considerably in class from his last-start fifth behind Magnificent Storm in the group 3 Navy Cup on November 3.