Gerald Ryan remains non-committal about a Golden Slipper start for Lucky Raquie despite the filly enhancing his reputation as one of Australia’s best trainers of two-year-olds in the Black Opal Stakes.
Lucky Raquie filled an autumn void left in Ryan’s stable by her three-quarter brother Rubick with a come-from-behind win in the Sunday’s Listed race at Thoroughbred Park in Canberra.
Rubick is out of the Golden Slipper and in the spelling paddock and while Lucky Raquie, raced in the same interests, will continue through the Sydney carnival but Ryan isn’t sold on her prospects in next month’s $3.5 million race.
“She’s nominated for the Slipper but I always thought she would be a Sires’ and Champagne horse,” Ryan said.
“We’ll sit down and work it out. If we went to the Slipper I’d keep her fresh and probably wouldn’t run her again but if you were aiming her at one of those other big races during the carnival you’d probably go to the Sires’ and the Champagne.
“And she might have one run in the middle somewhere.”
Ryan trained Paint to win the Black Opal in 1996 and he backed that youngster’s brilliance to the hilt before he finished second to Merlene in the Golden Slipper.
Giving Glyn Schofield a feature weekend double after his Group One win on Boban at Warwick Farm on Saturday, Lucky Raquie ($10) stormed home to beat Mr Cha Cha ($3.30) by three-quarters of a length.
Ryan almost supplied the quinella with Klammer ($11) just a neck away in third.
Some corporate boomakers firmed the filly to $31 for the Golden Slipper but TAB didn’t move on Lucky Raquie’s quote, keeping her at $51 and jockey Glyn Schofield said he was not surprised by the lack of fanfare.
“She’s not quite a Slipper horse,” he said.
“She’s not that naturally quick early on but she is certainly strong at the end of her race and the races from the Slipper and onwards would be ideal for her.”
Recent history is also against Lucy Raquie completing the Black Opal-Golden Slipper double with the last horse to do it being Catbird in 1999.
“Gerald and I have always had a great opinion of her,” Schofield said.
“Winning the Black Opal obviously makes her very valuable but I don’t think it is the last race she is going to win or the last black-type race so she’s got a lot in front of her.”
