Brad Widdup will head to Rosehill with a pair of live chances in two of the feature sprint races.
Nags To Riches had shown above-average ability from the moment she entered Brad Widdup’s stable, so when she woke the morning after her second start barely able to walk, the trainer feared the worst.
Having impressively won her debut at Hawkesbury in the winter, the filly resumed with a narrow second at Warwick Farm on November 25 in a promising return.
Less than 24 hours later, Widdup had ordered urgent scans on her lungs.
“Last time in she ran second at Warwick Farm and when I got her home the next morning she couldn’t walk. It was like she had a broken rib,” Widdup said.
“She had no pockets in the lung, but she definitely had something going on surrounding her lungs and outside her lungs.
“It was a bit of a worry. You get these unexplained things now and then. She might have just torn some rib cartilage, which is quite sensitive.”
Nags To Riches was put on antibiotics and spelled but it was an anxious wait to see how she returned on race day.
That day came last month when she headed to Gosford and no-one was more relieved than her trainer to see her coast to victory by almost three lengths.
“She got over it, thank God, and she won really well first up,” he said.
“She has always shown a lot from day one. She has always trialled well, worked well, raced well. It was good to see her come back and win.”
Nags To Riches was scratched from Warwick Farm midweek to tackle the Listed Denise’s Joy Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill on Saturday and in an open betting race, she is second elect at $7.
She will be joined at Rosehill by barn mate Adelong, who lines up three races later in the Listed Ortensia Stakes (1100m).
The talented mare was given a good spell after a winter preparation which extended into the spring and with two runs under her belt, the latest a third to Embracer at Hawkesbury, Widdup is expecting her to show up, particularly on her favoured soft conditions.
“She ran terrific the other day and she seems to be peaking for this race,” he said.
“She has drawn a little bit awkward (11) but she is three from three at the course and distance….it’s the right time of year for her and everything seems to be going the right way.”
