With six Golden Slipper runners, Adrian Bott didn’t know which horse to watch in the run, but at the finish the Tulloch Lodge trainer had eyes only for their lone filly Lady Of Camelot.
In a year when most felt the colts had the edge, Lady Of Camelot ($6.50) upstaged the boys with a determined head win over Victorian visitor Coleman ($41) while favourite Storm Boy ($2.60 fav) was another 1-1/2 lengths away third in front of a crowd of 17,627.
It was Bott’s second Golden Slipper after Farnan in 2020 and a record eighth for his training partner Gai Waterhouse, who while she wasn’t on track was front of mind for Bott.
“I will cherish that win,” Bott said.
“To be able to win another Slipper alongside Gai, second in (our) partnership, eight for her in total, she has been my biggest supporter my whole career.
“She has passed on so much and just taught me about what’s special in the industry and where we need to be focusing our time.
“It took me a few years to catch on to the two-year-olds and this particular race and I feel each year we’re building momentum in that regard and now we’ve got a hunger for more next year.”
A Rosehill winner in February, Lady Of Camelot made a hit-and-run mission to Melbourne where she finished runner-up in the Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) before Waterhouse and Bott brought her back to Sydney, keeping her up to the mark with a trial between races.
Blake Shinn picked up the Golden Slipper mount and made all the right moves, trailing the speed and producing her at the right time to score.
“We were always very happy with her. I thought it was a huge performance in the Blue Diamond and ever since she got back to Sydney from there, she continued to go to a new level,” Bott said.
“It was a year with plenty of depth for the colts and they were highly spoken about throughout the week so maybe in the public’s eye, she was able to fly under the radar a little bit.”
Lady Of Camelot is the third foal out of Fastnet Rock mare Miss Debutante and the broodmare’s third Golden Slipper runner, the others being Queen Of The Ball and Platinum Jubilee, both stakes-winners at two.
For connections of previously unbeaten colt Storm Boy, the race was a tough watch.
The youngster dwelt slightly at the start and found himself midfield, Ryan Moore having to hustle him forward to improve his position.
He battled on well in the straight on what many regarded as the worst part of the track near the inside, but it wasn’t his day.
Bott said while disappointed for Storm Boy’s owners, he had no doubt the horse could bounce back in the Sires’ Produce (1400m) and Champagne Stakes (1600m).
“It got a bit messy for him, he couldn’t get any momentum,” Bott said.
“But he will push on to the Triple Crown I think.”
Matt Laurie was over the moon with the effort of Coleman, who had battled foot soreness all week and had to pass a final vet test on Friday to confirm his place in the field.
“You could see Coleman was starting to really surge and come into the race and then Gai’s horse has just snuck up along the inside, so, look, I’m incredibly proud of the horse.” Laurie said.
“We didn’t have a great week. I spent a lot of time icing this horse. If he hasn’t been in a bucket of ice over the last ten hours over the last few days I’d be surprised. He’s gone phenomenally.”
Coolmore had Storm Boy and second favourite Switzerland, who finished eighth, with Tom Magnier taking their defeats on the chin.
“It’s the game we’re in, you have good days and bad days and you’ve got to learn to take the bad ones,” Magnier said.
“They’re both lovely horses and we’ll have a nice dinner tonight and we can relax and think about it on Monday.”
