Expensive Colts Start To Realise Potential
The Age
Thursday August 28, 2008
WHILE trivia buffs took note of the wins of $2 million yearlings Time Thief and Allied Force, possibly the first time that two horses of that value have won at the same mid-week meeting, trainers Lee Freedman and David Hayes contemplated the untapped potential of their valuable colts and left Moonee Valley to plot a course towards the spring.
Barring sprint heroine Miss Andretti, Freedman has played only a minor role in recent spring and autumn carnivals, admitting his stable is going through a rebuilding phase. But with a handful of impressive three-year-old winners in recent weeks, Freedman is again building a handy team and may have found a flagship galloper in Time Thief."There's so much improvement in him," Freedman said after the win."We're tight for time for the better races as he was unraced before today but at least we're off to a good start." Allied Force's likely next step will come in a Saturday class sprint at Moonee Valley in a fortnight before Hayes raises the bar again to stakes class, an ambitious plan for a horse that jumped from a maiden win at Bendigo to a flying handicap in town yesterday.But although the task appears steep, both Hayes and jockey Craig Williams are confident Allied Force will handle the challenge now that the four-year-old is showing the ability they have long known he possesses.
© 2008 The Age
