Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Smart filly Poppyonthebeach gave champion reinsman Gary Hall Jnr a torrid time in the sulky before scrambling to a nose victory over Wicked Lover in the $21,000 The Minstrel Team Bond Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Poppyonthebeach, trained by Justin Prentice, was the $4.70 second fancy, with Delulu dominating the betting as the $1.85 favourite.
There was plenty of action early, with Delulu dashing forward from out wide at barrier eight to burst past Spirited Whitby ($8.50) and go to the front after 500m, with Hall settling Poppyonthebeach in sixth position.
About 60m after getting to the front Delulu broke into a fierce gallop, veered out and dropped back towards the rear, with Spirited Whitby regaining the lead, and with Wicked Lover ($6.50) still in the breeze.
The tempo of the race had been quite slow, with an ambling lead time of 37.8sec. followed by slow quarters of 32.1sec. and 31.7sec.
Hall made a fast move with Poppyonthebeach 600m from home but his bid for the lead was thwarted by Wicked Lover, who booted through on the one-wide line to the inside to keep her rival on her outside, out three wide.
Eventually Kyle Symington sent Wicked Lover to the front 350m from home, with Poppyonthebeach pouring on the pressure. The two fillies were then locked together in a supreme tussle before Poppyontheeach gained the verdict by a nose to win at a 2.0.3 rate after a final 400m of 28.3sec.
“Popponthebeach was driving good in the field but when I took off, she wanted to run in,” said Hall. “In the home straight all she wanted to do was to bore down and I had to keep pulling her off from Wicked Lover.”
Poppyonthebeach is by Downbytheseaside and is the first foal out of the Art Major mare Naamark, who won once (at Bendigo in May 2020) from 24 starts. She now has raced seven times for three wins, two placings and $26,855.