Grafton races Tara Jasmine John Shelton

One-time Country Championships Final favourite Tara Jasmine is unlikely to emulate the deeds of her inaugural Kosciuskzo winning stablemate Belfyer but that doesn’t mean she won’t be performing on the big stage this spring.

John Shelton’s Sadler’s Wells descendant resumes at home at Grafton on Monday, racing for the first time since her totally luckless Country Championships Final tilt at Royal Randwick on April 10.

The Form: Complete NSW Racing thoroughbred form, including video replays and all you need to know about every horse, jockey and trainer. Find a winner here!

“She got a real bad check at the start and got flattened half-way through the race but she had probably come to the end of her tether by then anyhow,’’ Shelton said.

“She’s come back now and hopefully we can get a good prep out of her.’’

Tara Jasmine, unlike Belflyer, has plenty of value post-racing as a breeding prospect, more so if she can win some black-type.

A stakes-win is naturally a priority for Shelton, it’s the ‘where’ and the ‘when’ that is open for discussion.

‘’It’s a wait and see and this stage,’’ he said. “We’ve got little plans there but whether they come to fruition we will just have to wait – she’ll have to tell us.

‘’I think for all county trainers the Kosciuskzo is at the back of everyone’s mind. She can be brilliant but I think as she is getting a bit older she will end up getting a mile. She looks more settled and more relaxed to me.’’

Tara Jasmine is unbeaten in her two starts at Grafton, both fresh and with a combined margin of upwards of six-and-a-half lengths.

‘’She is pleasing me, she’s done everything right. She is only a little filly with a big weight but we have got to start somewhere,’’ Shelton said.

‘’She’s got a sticky barrier too but she probably should be a little better than them I think.’’

Shelton meanwhile is eager to see Great Marlow crack it for a rare, but deserved win in Monday’s Jockeys Reunion Benchmark 58 Handicap (1610m).

‘’He is a good, honest horse,’’ the trainer says.

“This looks a nice race for him back on his home-track.

“He looks good and he hasn’t done anything wrong between runs so he will be thereabouts.’’

Great Marlow has only won twice in 20 starts and managed seven placings – charging home late in most of them.

‘’He has got to have the race run to suit him. A few of those seconds and thirds could have easily been wins but that’s just his racing pattern.’’

Great Marlow is running over a mile on Monday but he is purpose-built to go twice as far owing to a remarkable pedigree.

His sire, Ustinov, is a son of the 1991 Melbourne Cup winner Let’s Elope whilst his second and third dams are by Sheikh Maktoum’s Melbourne Cups winners, Jeune and At Talaq.

Shelton’s other two runners at home on Monday are the lightly-raced duo Allusive Eye and Cabsav

‘’Allusive Eye ran a great race second-up. I was a little bit disappointed in her the other day at Casino but the jocks said the track wasn’t real flash that day.

‘’Cabsav is showing a bit of promise so I’d like to see him run a good race.’’

Originally published asTara Jasmine to resume at Grafton

Source: Read Full Article