A Jewel of a week for Princess Shorna

After visiting ten Arrowfield stallions during her 17-year breeding life, Princess Shorna has happily taken up a new career as a nanny to weanling and yearling fillies. In the attentive care of the Stud’s expert staff, she approaches her 23rd birthday in great heart.

However, her breeding record isn’t quite complete, and may yet be signed off with a flourish by her last foal.

Princess Shorna’s 2YO daughter Snitzel’s Jewel, already a winner on debut at Gosford in February, scored a handsome victory over 1000 metres at Warwick Farm on Saturday and will now be aimed at next month’s ATC Silver Shadow S. G3, the first race in the rich Princess Series for 3YO fillies.

Snitzel’s Jewel was bred by Arrowfield & Planette Thoroughbred and purchased for $20,000 by Darby Bloodstock from the Bellerive Stud draft at the 2011 Magic Millions National Weanling Sale. The chestnut filly is raced by Scott Darby, Miriam Arora, Fred Frendo’s Independent Trio Syndicate, Gary Bachell, Ray Deeb, Con Varis, Mick Pustavrh, Charles Beynon & Rob Campbell. She is trained Gerald Ryan whose record includes 20 winners by Snitzel, among them Group winners Snitzerland, Flying Snitzel, Hot Snitzel, and Dances on Stars. 

Scott Darby says of Snitzel’s Jewel, “She is a lovely balanced filly that was always going to grow from the time we purchased her as a weanling. It’s been great to see the development she has made, she has lengthened, strengthened and has a wonderful disposition.

“From breaking to racing she has always shown ability. She was a very easy filly to syndicate and even after 2 starts, 2 wins we are not sure yet just how good she is.”

He explains, “At her first start she was trapped off the track, feeling her shins and still won comfortably in class record time, and on Saturday she went to the line with her ears pricked, yet jockey Glyn Schofield reported that she didn’t handle the wet surface. We’re all very excited and if I could, I would have the majority of my syndications by Snitzel, they just all run!”

Snitzel’s Jewel is among Snitzel’s nine juvenile winners in Australia this season, and is her dam’s second winner in the past week. Last Thursday 3YO gelding Substation (by Not A Single Doubt) won at Grafton for Eagle Farm trainer Tracy Green.

Substation and Snitzel’s Jewel are the last two of Princess Shorna’s 12 foals, eight of which have won. The best of them so far has been the bonny stakes-winning mare Hidden Wonder (by Danzero) who earned almost $600,000 before being sold for $140,000 as a broodmare last year.

Descended from a sister to Hall of Fame champion Tobin Bronze, Princess Shorna is by the excellent sire Last Tycoon whose peripatetic stud career included a stint at Arrowfield. His daughters have proved invaluable, especially when crossed with Redoute’s Choice, a combination responsible for 10 SW from 40 named foals.

Interestingly, Snitzel has seen only six Last Tycoon mares, but five of them have left winners to him, notably Group 3 2YO winner Dances on Stars, one of his sire’s 18 stakes performers this season. Snitzel is ending the 2012/13 season as Australia’s leading 4th crop sire, with prizemoney of $6.5 million and 11 stakeswinners. He goes into the spring with a full book of mares to serve at a fee of $49,500 inc. GST.