Ellen Tormey will drive the nominal race favouite in the Youthful Stakes, Presidentialsecret.
It’s a long way from Ashburton to Australia for a two-year-old pacer but that’s the task for Arma Augustus when he debuts in the $20,000 Benstud Standardbreds Youthful Stakes at Tabcorp Park Friday night.
The colt by Pay Me Christian was originally owned and trained in New Zealand until Bill Morgan crossed the ditch and had a drive on the youngster.
That moment was the catalyst for the Seymour horseman to enlist help from a stable client in order to secure the well-trialled juvenile.
“I went over to New Zealand and had a drive on him and I didn’t mind the horse so some stable clients decided to purchase him,” Morgan said.
“He had trialled in New Zealand and he ran second to a horse that looks like he might be okay. I bought him on what he felt like when I drove him rather than his trial though.”
The trial victor is called Return To Sender and he has been consistent, twice running third behind Mark Purdon’s boom two-year-old Isaiah.
Arma Augustus has been rated $10 by Harness Racing Victoria’s form expert Bill Hutchison and Morgan concedes that he is still learning and certainly isn’t the finished product.
“He came over just before Christmas so we’ve had some time with him. He’s a bit heavy and green but they probably all are at this stage of the season,” he said.
“I’m hoping he will develop into a nice three-year-old, he is still a colt so hopefully he will keep his head on him.
“I think he should be able to hold his own out of the gate, you just don’t know until you get into a race. If it’s an even line out he should be able to hold up alright.”
Morgan is likely to face his stiffest competition from Presidentialsecret who has drawn outside the polemarker in two and is rated the $2.70 favourite.
Mulgrave and Young Modern look the other two standouts of the raced brigade while Sketch Me, for Wayne Potter and Chris Alford, will be the other debutante in the race.
