Pickaberry form clash looks promising tonight

Press, 21 November 1987, Page 33

Pickaberry form clash looks promising tonight

By

JEFF SCOTT

A promising clash of form should make the $30,000 Pickaberry Three-Year-Old Championship, the third leg of the T.A.B. treble on the final night of the New Zealand Metropolitan’s Cup meeting tonight, one of the most interesting races of the evening. Even without Dillon Dean, Tuapeka Knight and Starship, the Pickaberry is not short on talent with the likes of Wait a Moment, Kiwi Supreme, Top Vance, Cardinal Star and Metro Boy, all leading chances. Wait A Moment, unlucky not to make the Sires’ Stakes Final last week after a brilliant finishing burst for third on Cup day, made amends with a dashing late run to

swamp Mood Maker near the finish on Show day — his third win in his last four outings. The Clever Innocence gelding looks capable of extending his winning record this evening, but will not get things easy. Kiwi Supreme, another by the successful Springs-ton-based Nero stallion Clever Innocence, put up a tremendous run for fourth in the Sires’ Stakes Final on Show day after having little luck in the running. A debut winner in 1:59.63 at Invercargill earlier this month, the Invercargill-trained gelding looks set to take a high ranking among his age group and showed with his Show day run, he has exciting potential. Top Vance has finished well for two seconds on

the first two days of the meeting and is another shaping as Derby material. The close relative of top Northern stayer, Luxury Liner, is deserving of a win here.

The Morven-trained stablemates, Cardinal Star, which had little luck in the Sires’ Stakes Final, and Metro Boy, which put in a storming late run for fourth behind Wait a Moment and company on Show day, are improving all the time and cannot be left out of calculations.

Westham, placed in the Inter-Dominion Trotters’ Final at Addington in March after being in the open throughout, has failed to reproduce that sort of form in this campaign but will get few better opportunities to show his true worth than in the second leg of the

T.A.B. treble tonight.

The C4-C6 mobile trot over 2000 m should suit his style, while Point Away, an upset winner on Show day, is reliable and usually prominent, while the likely favourite, Bellam, is the class horse of the field but is awkwardly drawn on the inside of the second row.

Laser Lad, which recovered for a creditable third to Michele Bromac and Keystone Surprise in a fast-run mobile 2000 m pace on Cup day after being checked soon after the start, appeals most in the opening leg of the treble over 3200 m.

He made ground fast late for sixth on Show day after being one of the tailenders on the home turn and only needs an ounce of luck to return to winning form here.