Ken Casellas | Race Replay
New Zealand-bred mare Pocket The Change has raced in the shadows of her illustrious full-brothers No Outlaw and Pocket The Cash throughout her 81-start career.
However, she has proved to be an honest performer who notched her eleventh victory when Aiden De Campo drove her to victory as a $16 chance in the 2130m Free Entry Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Pocket The Change is prepared by Millendon trainer Sonia Zucchiatti, who has given the seven-year-old 32 starts for two wins, seven placings and $57,432 in stakes since she was purchased for $20,000 by South-West harness racing identity Rob Humphries and Victorian breeder and trainer Grahame Searle about 13 months ago.
“I jog up a lot of horses for owner Albert Walmsley and trainer Ryan Bell, and they were planning to send Pocket The Change to the breeding barn,” said Zucchiatti.
“Ryan then asked me if I wanted to train the mare for three months before she went to the breeding barn. It was then that Albert decided to sell her and he put her in an online sale, and the new owners got me to keep training her.”
Pocket The Change has performed well, and she now has earned $137,167 from 11 wins and 22 placings from 81 starts.
She is by champion sire Bettors Delight and is the third foal out of Ideal Pocket, who was retired after racing 13 times for two wins, five placings and $12,428. Her first two foals have enjoyed great successes on the track with No Outlaw earning $415,861 from 39 wins and 46 placings from 202 starts and Pocket The Cash racing 169 times for 30 wins, 61 placings and $342,029 in prizemoney.
No Outlaw won 22 times in America after 11 wins in Victoria and six in Queensland. Pocket The Cash won 15 races in Western Australia between 2019 and 2023 before winning twice in Queensland and 13 times in America.
Pocket The Change began from the No. 1 barrier on Friday night when De Campo was happy to take the sit behind the speedy $2.25 favourite Charivari, who set a solid pace before Pocket The Change finished strongly to win by a length from the fast-finishing Holy Hecka ($8.50).
Yarloop trainer Shane Steele drove aggressively to land $5.20 chance Me Flash a strong winner in the 2130m Meet Up Before The Game Pace. Me Flash went forward from the outside barrier (No. 8) on the front line and worked hard outside the pacemaker and $3.90 favourite Catch The Red Eye before going on to win by a length from $7.50 chance Maddy Rocks, who ran home well from seventh at the bell.
Serpentine trainer Matt Scott enjoyed a quinella result in the Garrard’s Pace over 2130m when Barbados ($9.50) won by three lengths from Gee Smith ($34). The quinella dividend was $109.70.
Barbados, the polemarker driven by Ajay Markham, trailed the frontrunning Soho Confidential ($6.50) and gained a dream inside run when that pacer shifted out about 500m from home. Gee Smith trailed Barbados throughout the race before finishing solidly.