Trainer Roger James is confident that his quality mare Silent Achiever has taken no harm from a recent colic attack and is one hundred per cent fit to take her place in the Group 1 $650,000 The Bundaberg Rum Doomben Cup (2000m) at Doomben on Saturday.
Top Kiwi mare Silent Achiever is back in top order for the Doomben Cup at Doomben. Photo by Race Horse Photos Australia.
James was disappointed with the multiple Group 1 winner’s lacklustre eighth behind Leebaz in the Group 2 $358,000 Sky Thoroughbred Central A.D. Hollindale Stakes (1800m) at the Gold Coast two weeks ago and could find no excuses on the day.
And even though Silent Achiever suffered a colic attack on the way home from the races on the float, James was reluctant to offer that as a reason for the poor performance.
“I don’t believe so. She was very bright the morning of, and again after the race for an hour and a half before she was loaded onto the float so it is difficult to think that the colic had an impact on her run,” James told Sky Racing HQ.
But after considering the mare’s future and following extensive tests and investigations, James couldn’t find a reason not to give Silent Achiever another chance to win at Group 1 level.
“She has been under the microscope and I haven’t been able to find a reason not to run,” James said.
“I cannot honestly give you one reason why she shouldn’t be running. Had she not thrown in the bad one at the Gold Coast I would be one hundred percent happy with her.”
Silent Achiever was quick to recover from the colic attack and James has given her a fairly easy time since and took her to Doomben on Tuesday morning to stretch her legs before Saturday.
“She a fit mare and she did a little bit on Tuesday morning and that was enough,” James said.
The top Kiwi trainer repeated that he would not be running Silent Achiever in the Doomben Cup unless he was perfectly happy with her fitness and well-being.
“I think the world of the mare. She is the best I have trained and she has taken us for a wonderful ride. Her well-being is number one, two and three in my book,” James said.
The O’Reilly mare has visited the Group 1 winner’s circle on four occasions with her first as a three year old when she beat the colts and geldings in the 2012 NZ$750,000 NZ Derby (2400m) at Ellerslie.
She then went onto win a Group 1 hat trick in the Autumn of 2014 with wins in the NZ $200,000 New Zealand Stakes (2000m) at Ellerslie before winning the $500,000 Ranvet Stakes (2000m) and the $1.5m The BMW (2400m) both at Rosehill and she also ran third to Adelaide in the 2014 Group 1 $3m Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley in the Spring.
Silent Achiever hasn’t been in the winner’s stall since her win in The BMW and had a fairly vigorous 2015 Sydney Autumn Carnival campaign where she was unplaced at four starts.
She ran a first up fifth in the Group 2 $250,000 Optus Apollo Stakes (1400m), a fourth in the Group 1 $500,000 Chipping Norton Stakes (1600m), a fourth in Ranvet Stakes and a sixth in the The BMW.
Silent Achiever is well fancied in the Doomben Cup betting with Ladbrokes.com.au listing her as a $8.50 chance.
The Gai Waterhouse trained Pornichet at $4.20 and Team Hawkes’ Leebaz at $5 are fighting it out for favouritism with I’m Imposing marked at $8, just ahead of stablemate Foreteller at $10 and Gypsy Diamond at $11.
Doomben Cup market order at Ladbrokes.com.au: $4.20Pornichet, $5 Leebaz, $8 I’m Imposing, $8.50 Silent Achiever, $10 Foreteller, $11 Gypsy Diamond, $16 Moriarty, Hawkspur, $18 Green Moon, $19 Weary, Epingle, $26 Hopfgarten, $41 Banca Mo, Escado, $61 Addictive Habit.
