The reprogrammed Yarra Valley Cup has caused a change of plans for the Emma-Lee and David Browne-trained Basilinna.
The Yarra Valley Cup was scheduled to be run over 1950m last Sunday, but that meeting was called off after one race had been run due to rain and deteriorating track conditions.
In a bid to keep the Yarra Valley Cup, it was added as a benchmark 100 race and forms a part of an 11-race program at Moonee Valley on Saturday.
Basilinna had already been nominated for two races on Saturday – a benchmark 84 contest over 1500m and the Group 2 Sunline Stakes (1600m) – before the decision was made to add the Yarra Valley Cup to Saturday’s program.
The Browne’s were originally going to kick off Basilinna’s campaign in the Sunline Stakes, but felt the Yarra Valley Cup was a suitable starting point despite the extra distance.
“I don’t know if she is a winning chance first-up, but so long as she’s hitting the line and showing that she still wants to be involved, that will please us,” Emma-Lee Browne said.
Basilinna took the Browne’s on a spring carnival ride in 2023, finishing third in both the Ethereal Stakes (2000m) at Caulfield and the VRC Oaks (2500m) at Flemington.
The following autumn, she was just touched out second-up in the Kewney Stakes (1600m) at Flemington, her best performance in four outings.
The Browne’s held high hopes last spring, with a third in the Pinker Pinker Plate (2025m) at Cranbourne a best performance from five starts.
“We went back to the drawing board a little bit with her after the spring,” Browne said.
“We had been hoping she would come up like she had in the autumn last year and in the spring as a three-year-old, but just a few things weren’t quite right with her.
“It was probably more mental than anything else, so we gave her a good break and we’re hoping she’s back and her behaviour at The Valley on Tuesday morning was impeccable.
“We’ve got no plans for her after Saturday.
“She’s already taken us on an amazing ride, so hopefully we can enhance her pedigree.”
