News

Inglis series looms for classy Murray juvenile

1st Dec 2015

Illawarra Mercury - Tuesday 1 December, 2015

A date with the $500,000 2YO Inglis Nursery (1000m) looms for unbeaten Bede Murray-trained colt Rafha’s Choice.

After taking out the Kembla’s first two-year-old race of the new season, the son of I Am Invincible made it back-to-back successes with a win in the International Animal Health Plate (1100m) at Rosehill last Saturday.

His next test will likely come in the Inglis Nursery on December 12 at Randwick, before potentially chasing an autumn campaign in the new year.

“He is probably up to the Autumn and with the babies, they just keep improving,” stable representative Paul Murray said.

“After the Inglis Classic he will probably have a couple of weeks at the farm and then we will aim him at the main one at I think it is February.”

Rafha’s Choice was purchased for $60,000 at the Inglis Classic Yearling Summer sales in February earlier this year.

He has built a flawless two from two record in his first two visits to the races which has seen him collect $86,000 in przemoney.

The colt outlasted Bjorn Baker’s Geneteau on a heavy track on debut at Kembla and stepped up again at his first visit to town against several highly-rated juveniles.

“Hopefully he steps up later on which he will if he keeps improving,” Murray said.

“Blake Shinn got off him the other day and said he is a gem to ride.

“He just jumps out, puts himself there and goes to sleep.

“When you ask him to pick up he picks up again.

“He doesn’t reef and tear so he doesn’t use much energy. He just does what you ask him.”

Shinn was forced to take up the speed after jumping from barrier four.

He gave Rafha’s Choice an easy time of it up front in the small field of six two-year-olds.

He led coming into the straight and proved too tough in the run to the post.

Peter and Paul Snowden trained duo Attention and Taj Mahal filled out the placings.

“We didn’t want to lead, because of that thing of Bjorn Baker’s that we raced at Kembla and it led. It took the sit and left us there,” Murray said.

“Blake was happy to stack them up there and switched him off.

“He did all the work then.”

Provincial Championships winner Sure And Fast also ran for Murray at Rosehill on Saturday, but wasn’t able to chalk up his second win this preparation.

The five-year-old, which has won $471,505 in prizemoney to date, struggled to make up ground behind Trevor McIlrick trained Got The Goss in the Ranvet Handicap (1200m).