Stephen Reed
Lightly-raced New Zealand-bred seven-year-old Lovers Delight has won at 15 of his past 31 starts and he has excellent prospects of making a successful return to city racing by winning the $40,000 Slater Gartrell Sports Thornlie Store Easter Cup at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Lovers Delight has not appeared at Gloucester Park since he raced three wide throughout before winning a 2130m mobile by a head from Dearborn in the final week of July last year. After that win he was off the scene for seven months before resuming for Bunbury trainer Stephen Reed in the Harvey Cup at Albany in the last week of February.
He raced wide early, was restrained to the rear and then battled on, out wide, to finish sixth behind Galactic Galleon. His next two starts were his first in stands, starting off back marks in modest company over 2500m at Bunbury’s Donaldson Park. He started from 50m and scored a runaway six-length victory over Bledisloe and then started off 60m when he covered a lot of extra ground before winning by three lengths from Crave.
There is no doubt that Lovers Delight meets far stronger opposition in the Easter Cup, but there is also no question that he is a quality pacer who showed his class when third behind Seel N Print in the group 1 WA Derby in April 2011.
He is the only runner off the 10m mark, behind the six frontmarkers and in front of American Muscle and Benjamin Banneker (20m), Thumpem and Rocket Reign (30m) and Shardons Rocket (40m).
The 31-year-old Reed has timed Lovers Delight’s preparation for the 2907m Easter Cup to perfection and has high hopes the gelding will give him his second success in the group 3 event. Reed trained Uppy Son when that pacer, driven by Gary Hall jun., started favourite at 11/8 and won the 2012 Easter Cup by a half-length from Dundee Three, who fought on determinedly after working hard in the breeze for the final two laps.
Reed’s father Mike trained and drove Just Packapunch when he won the 1995 Easter Cup and his elder brother Mark trained The Maitre Dee for his win in 2000.
Serpentine trainer Matt Scott has engaged Mark Reed to drive reliable standing-start performer Bartowski in Friday night’s Cup. Bartowski won for the fourth time this season when Gary Hall jun. drove him to an all-the-way win in a 2503m stand last Friday week.
Bartowski will start from barrier three on the front line and Reed will be anxious to gain an early advantage over his rivals by sending the seven-year-old to an early lead over the two horses (Major Catastrophe and Pembrook Henry) drawn on his inside. Both those pacers relish setting the pace and the early contest for the lead is sure to be keenly fought.
Another frontmarker False Promise has struck a purple patch for young trainer Ryan Cummins and the evergreen eight-year-old will have admirers who will support him to notch his fourth win in a row. False Promise has produced powerful finishing bursts to win in 2503m stands at each of his past three starts.
Leading trainer Gary Hall sen. will be represented by Benjamin Banneker and American Muscle as he seeks to win the Cup for the fourth time --- after successes with The Falcon Strike (2003), Patches (2006) and Rebel Scooter (2013). Hall had the disappointment of watching star pacer and 7/4 on favourite Alta Christiano set the pace before wilting to finish third behind 12/1 chance Finbar Abbey and Polak (22/1) in the 2014 Easter Cup.
Thumpem, trained at Baskerville by Sonia Zucchiatti, is a strong stayer in top form and a leading contender off the 30m mark. Thumpem (Kim Prentice) surged home from eighth at the bell to win in fine style from Art Connoisseur and American Muscle over 2503m at his latest outing, last Friday fortnight. That followed a smart win over Dashing Christian and Lively Shard and a splendid second to Dynamite Dude at his two previous starts.
The sole backmarker off 40m is the Tony Svilicich-trained iron horse Shardons Rocket, who has amassed $452,770 from his 33 wins and 101 placings from 206 starts. If all Cup runners had to start off their automatic handicap marks, Shardons Rocket would be starting off 80m not 40m under the discretionary conditions of the race.
Morgan Woodley will drive Shardons Rocket, who cannot be underestimated. Woodley won the 2008 Easter Cup winner for trainer Justin Warwick.