Girl busts colt boom
Herald Sun 02/02/03

TRAINER Brian Mayfield-Smith has cast doubts on Innovation Girl's return bout with boom Sydney colt Thorn Park in Saturday week's Group 1 Cadbury Guineas, despite the star filly's brave win at Flemington yesterday.

The Debonair was touted as a match race and Innovation Girl ($2.25 fav) clearly took round one over Thorn Park ($3), who finished sixth.
But as an expected definitive guide to the $753,000 Cadbury Guineas (1600m), the race threw up more questions than answers.

Mayfield-Smith was proud of Innovation Girl's win over the 1400m, but had genuine concerns about the filly tackling the 1600m of the Guineas.

Tiring on the line after tending to overrace, Innovation Girl ($2.25 fav) had not won like a 1600m horse, Mayfield-Smith said.

"It was not a 1600m run," he said. "I'll have to have a long, hard think about the Guineas."

Innovation Girl's win was her 10th success in 13 starts. In Thorn Park's defence, he raced wide on the turn on a day in which it was difficult to make ground out wide.

Trainer Bob Thomsen and jockey Darren Beadman were far from downcast.

Thomsen said the race was not run to suit the colt, who was having his first Melbourne start.

"It was a big ask," he said.

Beadman said the colt's run had ended on the line.

"It was three weeks between runs, there's still improvement in him," he said.

The other Sydney star, John Hawkes's Jeremiad ($9), was trapped wide and faded to run eighth. "He had a hard run out wide, that makes it tough," stable foreman Wayne Hawkes said.

It was left to the Tom Hughes Sr-trained Delago Brom ($17) to turn in the best Guineas trial by getting to within 3/4 length of the winner.

The colt came from last on the turn, weaving between runners to run second and sizzling home his last 400m in 21.9sec.

Tycoon Ruler, a $61 chance, finished third after chasing the winner throughout, emphasising the edge for on-pace runners yesterday.

Jockey Patrick Payne said Delago Brom had turned in an ideal Guineas trial.

"He was entitled to get home because he did no work early," Payne said. "But it was a very good run and it wasn't a gut buster for him."

Innovation Girl's win was a triumph for jockey Nash Rawiller, who had to stick to a rigid exercise and diet program to make the filly's weight of 54kg.

Like Mayfield-Smith, Rawiller was wary about the filly's prospects over 1600m.

"In the first 100 metres she was quite relaxed, then we came to the first turn and she saw daylight and she took off," Rawiller said.

"I was better not fighting her, so I let her run. She's very high class."

Mayfield-Smith has many options if he chooses to bypass the Guineas.

He could switch her back to the 1200m of the $200,000 Group 2 Swettenham Stud Stakes in Adelaide on Saturday week or reserve her for shorter Melbourne weight-for-age and set-weight races.

"There is a Group 1 win for her, I've just got to be patient. I'll do what's best for her," Mayfield-Smith said.