Star sprinter Hay List has been taken to the Randwick Equine Centre after suffering another setback with a lingering leg infection.
Trainer John McNair said the dual Group One-winning sprinter “went backwards overnight” and the decision was made to send him to Sydney from his NSW central coast base.
Hay List was ruled out of the Group One Doomben 10,000 on race eve a month ago with the infection.
“He went backwards overnight so I rang the vet and got him to come out and look at him,” McNair said at Gosford races on Friday.
“His temperature was normal, we had put a poultice on his back foot a couple of days ago and when he was sore in his yard this morning I thought it might be good because maybe something was coming out.
“I got the vet out and the nerve blocked the foot and it just got worse. We made the decision then that we were better off sending him up to the Randwick Equine Centre. They have got everything you need as far as scanning the horse is concerned.”
McNair said there had been several times in the past month when he thought the outstanding sprinter had almost overcome the setback and was back to normal.
“Glyn Schofield actually came and paid him a visit on Wednesday and the horse was as good as gold,” McNair said.
“And that’s just the strange thing about it. There’s no breaks in the skin, there’s no visible injury. We assume it started with a foot abscess but even that we don’t know for sure.”
Hay List has been invited to compete in Japan later this year but McNair said getting the powerhouse sprinter back to full health was the priority at the moment.
“I just want the horse to be well again and then worry about what the future holds,” he said.
Hay List won his two Group Ones this season and finished second to champion Black Caviar in another three majors.
AAP TURF
