Seachange Leads Filly of the Year Series

The Canterbury Jockey Club hosted the feature race of the weekend with the running of the $275,000 Group 1 New Zealand Bloodstock One Thousand Guineas (1600m) at Riccarton on Saturday.

A strong field saw exciting three year old filly, Seachange (Cape Cross x Just Cruising), ridden to victory by apprentice, Gavin McKeon, for trainer Ralph Manning, giving Manning his first Group 1 victory. The unbeaten filly now has four career wins to her credit and catapults to the lead of the New Zealand Bloodstock Filly of the Year Series with 12 points.

The last two winners of the New Zealand Bloodstock One Thousand Guineas, Justa Tad and Taatletail, have gone on to win the Filly of the Year Series so Saturday's win bodes well for the Cape Cross filly.

Bred by the Oaks Stud in Cambridge, Seachange wasn't offered for sale as a yearling but retained by Oaks Stud principal, Dick Karreman, to race. Lot 61 in the forthcoming Ready to Run Sale is a filly by Black Minnaloushe being offered by Sally's Stables from the half sister to Seachange's dam, Just Cruising.

Everswindell (Align x Hilarion Lady) finished in second place three quarters of a length behind the leader, with Tsarina Belle (Stravinsky x Empress Belle) a half head to third. Everswindell is now second on the Filly of the Year points table with seven points.

Tsarina Belle added to her tally after her ���second in the Listed Leila MacDonald Soliloquy Stakes at Ellerslie and now sits on 5.5 points behind Gr.3 Highview Stakes winner, Howmuchyacharging (Howbaddouwantit x Fairdale Lass) on six. The next race in the Series will be on the 10th December with the running of the Group 3 Robertson Motors Eulogy Stakes (1600m) at Awapuni.

New Zealand Bloodstock graduate Hazard (Sandtrap x Elle Taine) recorded a win in lead up race to the feature, the Listed Paritai Stud Canterbury Breeders Stakes (1400m). Hazard was purchased by trainer, Sally McKay, at the 2004 Spring Mixed Bloodstock Sale as a racehorse for $1,900 from Wychwood Farm. Hazard has a half-brother by Danske entered in next year's Yearling Sale. In second place was the Bruce Herd trained, Sapphire Belle (Danske x Sapphire Flight), a $22,000 purchase from the Karaka Select Sale.

At the Waikato Racing Club's meeting at Te Rapa, the first race on the card, the Esker Lodge Juvenile (1000m), was won by Blue Skies (Spectatorial x Blue Reality), the second highest priced lot of the 2005 Festival Sale. Purchased for $40,000 from Hallmark Stud, this was a first start win by the two year old filly for trainers Mike Moroney and Andrew Scott and owner, Mrs C Eagle.

Also at Te Rapa, Devoted (Bigstone x Loving Is Fun) won the feature of the meeting, the Listed Te Rapa Supa Centa Stakes (1200m) for trainer, Jim Gibbs, giving him the the second of three winners for the day. Devoted has a half-sister by Strategic Image entered in the 2006 Karaka Yearling Sales. Gibbs' first winner was with Kerry O'Reilly (O'Reilly x Pegarah) in the 2100m Open Handicap event which secured a quinella for Waikato Stud resident sire, O'Reilly, with Kajema (O'Reilly x Vreeland) in second.

Gibbs' third winner of the day was Darcybee (Zabeel x Emminent Walk) with Lisa Cropp aboard in the Listed Yesburg Insurance Services Pegasus Stakes Handicap (1000m) at Canterbury.