Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Promising gelding Thenu Came Along is poised to make a late bid to gain a place in the field to contest the $200,000 WA Derby on Friday week by winning the $21,000 Vale Hubert Tucker Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He is currently ranked at No. 15 for a start in the Derby, and Deni Roberts, who drives the three-year-old for leading trainers Greg and Sky Bond, is confident he will prove hard to beat, particularly with the advantage of beginning from the prized No. 1 barrier.
“The plan will be to lead, and hopefully be good enough,” said Roberts. “He gets out of the gate quite well, and his eighth behind Christopher Dance in last week’s Western Gateway was when he began out wide at barrier eight and was unable to get into the race.
At his previous outing Thenu Came Along impressed when he set the pace from the No. 2 barrier and dashed over the final 400m sections in 28.5sec. and 27.7sec. to win by four lengths from Sonic Chip.
Among Thenu Came Along’s chief rivals are Menemsha, who has a Derby ranking of No. 7, and several in-form runners Ideal Muscle, Maximum Rock, Atlantic Gem, Quinton and Soho Honey Rider.
Menemsha faces a stern test from out wide at barrier seven, while Ideal Muscle was an all-the-way winner over 2536m last Friday night when he defeated Maximum Rock, Quinton and Atlantic Gem.
Maximum Rock caught the eye when he was eighth at the bell and ran home fast to finish a head behind Ideal Muscle. “It was an excellent run last week, and a week earlier he finished a good third behind Golden Lode and Alta Tribute,” said trainer-reinsman Chris Voak.
“He is a very good sit-sprint horse who has beaten most of the runners he will meet on Friday night. He will hit the line like a bullet again.”
Roberts said that Thenu Came Along and the Bob Mellsop-trained Hold That Gold were her best winning prospects on the ten-event program. Hold That Gold will start from barrier four in the 2536m Trotsynd Supports JP Pacing Trot.
“Hold That Gold went very good last start (when he led and won easily from Sellune and Marengo Bay at Pinjarra on Monday of last week),” said Roberts. “Hopefully, he can get to the top, and that’s where he does his best work.”
Tenzing Bromac should also be prominent for Roberts when he starts from the inside of the back line in the Trotsynd J. P. Stratton Cup, while Steel The Show and Street Hawk will have many admirers.
Steel The Show will start from the back line in the 1730m Trotsynd#Winnerswin Pace, and Street Hawk will resume after a spell when he begins out wide at barrier seven in the Trotsynd Syndication Pace.
“The sprint is not ideal for Steel The Show, but don’t rule him out,” said Roberts. “Street Hawk’s work has been pretty. He has a tough draw, first-up, but he has good ability, and I expect a good showing.”
Street Hawk will clash with The Code Breaker, who is favourably drawn at barrier No. 1 for trainer Ryan Bell and reinsman Kyle Symington.
The Code Breaker has been unplaced at his past eleven starts, but Bell is looking forward to the seven-year-old returning to winning form, saying: “We will be making every post a winner. He gets his chance to win another race. He numerical form doesn’t reflect on how well he is going.
“He is a horse who has always relied on a barrier draw, and it is a while since he’s been out in front. He is quick out, and we will give him his chance out in front.”