It had been a tough night for Push It’s trainer Dean Swain at the Group 2 Black Top (515m) heats but you couldn’t miss his grin at the night’s end.
Swain’s sprinter (pictured) only qualified as one of the fastest runners-up for this Friday’s final but then received a helpful box draw for the decider.
Meredith Verhagen, daughter of Push It’s owner Alex, picked box one for the formidable railer during the post-heats box draw at a soggy Unibet Gardens on Friday night.
Swain was delighted with the draw for his charge, who has never finished out of the top two in six previous outings with the red rug.
“I said I would give Meredith a big hug and a kiss if she could draw box one for us,” Swain said with a smile.
“Box one definitely gives Push It a better chance. She loves the one and she knows this track as well.”
Heavy rain made for unhelpful track conditions at Unibet Gardens but that did not stop Miner’s Moss from recording an impressive performance.
He made the long journey from the Northern Rivers for trainer Mathew Reid worthwhile by winning his heat in 29.43, the fastest run of the night.
That perfromance relegated Push It down into second place, but this year’s Group 1 National Futurity winner at the same track came home in 29.58 to earn a final spot.
Zipping Willow will likely start the final as the one to beat after winning her heat in a solid 29.44.
The Jason Mackay-trained chaser, who has now won 28 of 40 starts, drew box five for the final.
“Zipping Willow is a champion bitch and obviously she will be tough to stop,” Swain, who saw three of his other hopefuls miss out on the final, said.
“My dog isn’t as good as her, but if she (Push It) jumps and leads she will be hard to beat.
“It’s good to make another group final. It’s going to be another exciting week.”
Mackay’s other final qualifier, Zipping Summah, drew box four in the final after winning her heat impressively in 29.49.
Arguably the night’s most impressive performance came from the fast-rising Alan’s Kidz.
The Robert Barnden-trained sprinter has recorded some notable recent results and starred again at Unibet Gardens, winning his heat in 29.66.
He drew box three for the final, which carries $40,000 to the winner.
Other qualifiers included Hershi, Cloud Ten and Rose of Galo.
The box draw for the Group 2 Black Top is: 1. Push It 2. Hersi 3. Alan's Kidz 4. Zipping Summah 5. Zipping Willow 6. Cloud Ten 7. Miner's Moss 8. Rose Of Galo 9. Tricky Rose 10. Kilkenny Babe.
The Black Top is the first leg of the new Thank Dog It's Friday racing series which sees feature races in regional NSW staged on a Friday night.
Click here for more information on the Thank Dog It’s Friday series.
