Norm Gardner is dreaming of Magic Millions riches with debut winner Miss Ostend, after she finished best to claim the Shores Of Avalon Handicap (1000m) at Thoroughbred Park on Sunday.
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The daughter of Zoustar will head to Wyong next month to contest the $200,000 Magic Millions Classic (1100m). Should she perform again in that race, Miss Ostend will book her ticket to the $2m Magic Millions Classic in January on the Gold Coast.
"The owner bought her at the Magic Millions at Christmas time, she's a lovely filly by Zoustar," Gardner said.
"He gave me the job, he wanted to get a filly with residual value that might go early so I picked her out. She's just a lovely filly, she's done everything right. She trialled well and raced really well yesterday.
"[Jockey] Matthew Cahill was very impressed, he doesn't normally say anything but he said I really like her, she's very professional. She only did that on one soft trial so there's a lot of improvement in her."
Miss Ostend hit the front in the final bound on Sunday as the $5.50 third pick in the five-horse field, finishing a flared nostril clear of Damien Lane's Impact Star.
John O'Shea's boom odds-on pop Ballo wobbled substantially around the bend and never featured.
Neville Layt's Never Astern rounded out the five horse field. The Queanbeyan trainer was the last local to claim a Magic Millions Classic when Karuta Queen brilliantly saluted in 2011.
Gardner's triumph on Sunday was his second winner in three days, after overseeing Caccini's shock win in the last at Gundagai on Snake Gully Cup day.
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The $51 hope came from near to last at the dog leg in the Gundagai home straight to arrive just in the nick of time.
"When I saw she was 30 to one I thought she was miles over the odds, three starts ago she won the Moruya Town Plate," Gardner said.
"She's dynamic first-up, I couldn't believe the price of her. She's a great mare. Just a delight to train, no problems, no hassles."
Caccini will head to a midweek Randwick meeting as her next assignment. "There's a mares race on the Kensington track in about three weeks," Gardner said.
James Buckley
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
