Not content to let his jockey son Chad have all the limelight, Glyn Schofield has turned back the clock with a deft frontrunning display aboard Taksu to win the feature race at Randwick.
Chad Schofield had earlier combined with champion trainer Chris Waller to celebrate a winning double aboard Kalino and Francesco Guardi, but it was the senior Schofield who stole the show in the Listed Civic Stakes (1400m).
Taking the speedy Taksu ($4 fav) to the front, Glyn Schofield rated the sprinter perfectly and he held on to outlast the fast-finishing Oscar Zulu ($7) with Looks Like Elvis ($11) third.
Winning trainer Joe Pride has enjoyed good success with the experienced hoop over many years and was happy to provide him with his latest black-type win.
“He is very good on horses out in front,” Pride said.
“He always rode (Pride’s former top sprinter) Ball Of Muscle and lately Coal Crusher. It’s great to give him an opportunity and he didn’t let us down.”
Taksu has been a model of consistency this preparation posting two wins and as many seconds in his five campaign starts, all on rain-affected tracks.
The only blot to his copybook came on a firm surface at Eagle Farm last start and Pride admitted he was nervous coming into Saturday’s race on a good track.
“He certainly didn’t like Eagle Farm. I wasn’t sure coming into today about him on the dry, but he has now won the best race he has won on a dry track, albeit a winter track,” Pride said.
“It was a good effort and he will probably come back in a couple of weeks’ time for the Winter Stakes.
“I brought him back from Queensland and toyed with the idea of putting him out, but at the end of the day he is a winter horse and this is the perfect time of year for him.”
Pride started two runners in the Civic Stakes with his other entrant, Mariamia, also performing admirably to finish fourth.
