Ken Casellas | Photo: Gloucester Park Harness Racing
The $100,000 Diamond Classic for two-year-old fillies next Friday week is the target for the promising Pocketful Of Opals, who scored a smart victory in the DTS 65,000 Stock Lines Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Pocketful Of Opals, bred, part-owned and trained in Collie by Bianca Ashcroft, will return to Gloucester Park on Tuesday night when she will start out wide at barrier eight in the first qualifying heat for the Diamond Classic in which she will clash with the talented Zephyra.
Pocketful Of Opals was a $23 chance from the No. 6 barrier on Friday night when Kyle Harper was able to send her to the front 50 metres after the start when the early leader Feeling Empathy ($21) galloped.
After a slow lead time of 38sec. and dawdling opening quarters of 34sec. and 31.4sec., Pocketful Of Opals covered the final 400m sections in 29.2sec. and 30.4sec. as she held on to defeat the fast-finishing $7.50 chance Morissette by a half-neck, with Chewysloosechange ($6.50) a close-up third.
Wanea, the $1.45 favourite, disappointed in wilting to finish sixth in the field of seven after she had raced behind the pacemaking Pocketful Of Opals for most of the way.
Pocketful Of Opals is by the New Zealand-bred stallion Foreclosure and is out of the Courage Under Fire mare Tella, who won races in New South Wales, South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia before being retired to stud with a record of 131 starts for 14 wins, 26 placings and $72,903 in stakes.
Pocketful Of Opals has raced nine times for three wins and a third placing for stakes of $23,253. Her victory on Friday night revived memories for Harper, who drove Tella 24 times for two wins and five placings for Ashcroft, including a victory at $24.60 as an eight-year-old at her final appearance in a race at Collie on April 1, 2018.
Harper went on to win with Bramante Steps ($2.25) at Northam on Saturday night.