“He handles the wet no problem and his form at Rosehill is actually a lot better than at Randwick,” Smith said of the $27 chance from gate 10.
“It’s just the gate. If he’d drawn a gate, I would be confident he would be right there. Hopefully a few come out, but he’s going super.”
Millie De Lune, pictured romping home at Randwick, is chasing the Winx Guineas on the Sunshine Coast.Credit: Getty Images
Smith also has Gerry Harvey-owned Snitzel colt Golden Straand ($10) stepping up from a dominant Gosford super maiden win at his second start to tackle a benchmark 72 handicap.
“You’d probably prefer to see him in a class one or two, but we’re just not getting the races to cater for him well,” he said.
“He’s a pretty green horse still. He’s got the ability, no doubt about that, but he’s not putting it together yet. He just needs some racing, and it’s hard to scratch him from barrier one.”
Smith’s Anythink Goes, second to in-form Thunderlips last start, was a $27 chance in the final race.
“He had a poor prep last prep, but you pull that out, and the prep before that he was just run down late at Randwick and Rosehill,” he said.
“He’s good, fit and well. He’ll be handy in the run, make his own luck and he’ll be boxing away there at the finish. He’ll knock one of these over sooner or later.”
Miracle Spin ($17) was his other likely runner, in the seventh, where stablemate Fioprospero is the fifth emergency.
“He was bloody ordinary last start, so we sent him out to the farm to freshen him up,” Smith said of Miracle Spin.
“He’s in good nick, but he’s off the back of a freshen up at 2000m, so he might just feel the pinch late.”
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At the Sunshine Coast, Smith is chasing the Winx Guineas (1600m) with Millie De Lune ($4.80, gate one), which won well at Randwick over 2000m before finishing fourth there over 1800m when getting back too far in a slow race.
“It was ridiculous the way that race was run, but she’s going super,” he said. “Back to a mile has got to be a query, but I think she’s still learning how to race.”
Looking to the spring, Smith has Headwall back in work for a resumption in the Concorde Stakes on September 6 and a campaign aimed at securing an Everest slot. Sydney Cup runner-up Waltham is also back, with the Melbourne Cup his target.