Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Twelve months ago, Penny Black scored a comfortable victory in the Lombardo Pace, and she is poised to repeat the dose when she begins out wide at barrier No. 8 in the $50,000 Westside Auto Lombardo Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
She began from barrier five in last year’s feature event for mares and was untroubled to race in the breeze outside the pacemaker Peaceful before winning easily from Montana Glory and Wonderful To Fly, rating a smart 1.56.3 over the 2536m journey.
Last Friday night the six-year-old New Zealand-bred Penny Black was produced in fine fettle by trainer Michael Young when Emily Suvaljko rated her perfectly in the breeze outside Wonderful To Fly before taking the lead on the home turn and winning by a neck from Madam Publisher, rating 1.56.6 over 2130m after final quarters of 27.3sec. and 28.1sec.
That was an excellent first-up effort after a ten-week absence, and Suvaljko declared that she would have taken a great benefit from that run.
“We wanted to draw inside one horse this week, and that was Little Darling, and we have done that,” said Suvaljko. “Penny Black will be driven positively, and we will be looking to going forward in the early stages.”
Apart from Little Darling, Suvaljko goes into Friday night’s race with plenty of respect for the Annie Belton-trained Alta Allure (barrier five) who is racing in grand form, with her six starts this season resulting in two wins, one second (to Hunger Strike), two thirds and one fourth placing. Alta Allure, who ran on from sixth at the bell to finish third behind Penny Black and Madam Publisher last Friday night, will again be driven by Chris Lewis.
Little Darling, driven by Jocelyn Young for trainer Cameron Ross, has had two starts after a spell for an excellent first-up win over Bazaar Package and Sugar Delight at a 1.56.3 rate over 2130m last Friday week.
And then last Friday night Little Darling began from the outside barrier in the field of seven when she began speedily before being restrained back to last. She battled on gamely to dead-heat for fourth with the pacemaker Wonderful To Fly.
Deni Roberts is planning to set the pace with the Nathan Turvey-trained Hunger Strike on Friday night at the four-year-old’s first outing for month when she will begin from the No. 3 barrier. She rarely runs a poor race, and her past six starts have produced three wins, a second, a third and a fifth placing.
“This is a rise in grade for Hunger Strike, but she should be able to get to the front,” said Roberts.
Trainer-reinsman Stuart McDonald is looking for a strong performance from Madam Publisher, who raced in the one-out, one-back position before running home determinedly to finish a close second to Penny Black last Friday night.
“She was good last week when she was much better after I had got stuck into her after she had led two starts ago (finishing fourth behind Alta Allure),” he said. “She was underdone going into that race over 1730m two starts ago.
“So, I then gave her a pretty hard trial at Pinjarra and have hoppled her relatively hard since then. Her latest run was an indication that she is getting better. She is a rung below top notch and is not as good as Little Darling and Penny Black.
“But if those two mares happen to go to war, and if Madam Publisher is somewhere close to them, she is a potential chance of beating them.”
Leading trainer-reinsman Aiden De Campo is happy with Champagne Everyone’s draw at barrier two on the back line and said the seven-year-old was capable of running a place.