Adelaide trainer Peter Jolly is keen to give Mossman gelding Morvada another classic campaign after he won carrying the grandstand at Morphettville on Saturday.
Morvada shouldered 63kg, less a 2kg claim for apprentice Sairyn Fawke, to a very impressive, second up victory in the Holdfast Insurance Hcp (1400m). Settled back on the fence in the early stages, he came with a powerful burst to overwhelm With A Bit Of Dash (Dash for Cash) and Mica Be The One (Bernardini).
Jolly races the winner in partnership with his wife Helen and will set him for the G1 South Australia Derby (2500m) on May 13.
Morvada won the LR Oaklands 2YO Plate last May and returned in the spring for placings in the LR Listed Hill Smith Stakes (1800m) and G2 Moonee Valley Vase (2040m) before running down the track in the Victoria Derby.
“It’s impossible to gauge his staying abilities on that run in the Victoria Derby,” Jolly said. “He over-raced on the speed before tiring. If he can relax a bit more this time in he should be OK.
“He had a good spell after the trip to Melbourne and has come back well. But I didn’t really want to run him on the weekend with the big weight. I thought there might have been a couple a bit sharp for him.”
Jolly will step Morvada up to 1600m for his next start and then follow the traditional classic route through the LR Port Adelaide Guineas (1800m) on April 8 and G3 Chairman’s Stakes (2000m) on April 29. “The Mossmans get better with age and we should know by then if he’s going to be ready for the Derby and the 2500m.”
Morvada was a $200,000 purchase from Vinery Stud at the 2015 Inglis Easter yearling sale and his NZ-bred dam Carnegie Minstrel (Carnegie) is from the immediately family of Kiwi Group 1 winner Zonda (Zabeel).
Carnegie Minstrel has a yearling colt by Myboycharlie which will sell this year at Easter as Lot 406 and a filly on the ground by Mossman and she was bred back to Headwater last year.
The Vinery connection continued in Adelaide on Saturday when Casino Prince sprinter Roselli Sting dived through a gap to defeat Mossman pair Vintage Grove and Red Begonia in the final race at Morphettville.
