Gollan rates his Girl in the Guineas
Queensland trainer Tony Gollan’s long-range plan to make an impact on the 2014 Melbourne Spring Carnival is ready to bear fruit at Caulfield on Saturday when he saddles up a runner in each of the Group 1 Guineas races.
The colt Looks Like The Cat has already attracted plenty of attention with a pair of excellent Group race seconds behind Guineas favourite Rich Enuff and is a top chance to be in the finish of the $1 million Caulfield Guineas G1.
By contrast, Traveston Girl, the stable’s runner in the Thousand Guineas G1, has been slightly forgotten in pre-race discussions, but Gollan rates her a good chance in an open field for the fillies’ Classic.
He says, “She’s really well and has trained on perfectly. She’s come on in her work and has had her best week in Melbourne. I think she’s closing the gap on the other fillies.
“I’ve always thought she’s a real miler, and she’ll enjoy the mile as long as she’s allowed to roll along at her tempo.”
Like Caulfield Guineas contenders Moonovermanhattan & Wandjina, Traveston Girl is an Arrowfield graduate, bred by the Stud in partnership with John Leaver & Alan Jones.
By retired champion sire Flying Spur, Traveston Girl was purchased for $60,000 from Arrowfield’s 2013 Magic Millions Gold Coast Sale draft for Troy Schmidt, also a part-owner of Looks Like The Cat.
Traveston Girl won two of her three starts in Brisbane as a late 2YO, and has run fourth in both her Melbourne runs this campaign, most recently beaten only 1.3 lengths in the MRC Thousand Guineas Prelude G2 won by Afleet Spirit.
Troy Schmidt expressed early confidence in Traveston Girl’s prospects when he purchased her dam Milande, in foal to All American, for $46,000 from Arrowfield at the 2014 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale.
Milande (by Dehere) is an unraced sister to the outstanding Group 1 winner Defier, from the family of champion 3YO Triscay and Group 1-winning fillies la Baraka and Demerger.
Flying Spur’s wonderful record includes 11 Group 1 winners, among them Champion 2YO Filly and three-time Group 1 winner Forensics who, like Traveston Girl, is out of a mare by Dehere.
