Hunter Valley trainer Terry Priest is "walking on air'' at the prospect of rugging up his first Group 1 race finalist Old Spice in this Thursday night's Brisbane Cup.
Old Spice stunned Albion Park fans last Thursday by winning his 520m heat in a blistering 29.74sec, time bettered only by Fernando Bale's Melbourne Cup winning kennelmate Dyna Double One.
"I'm still pinching myself to make sure it's true,'' a jubilant Priest said from Brisbane after Old Spice had posted a dashing first split of 5.48 on the way to winning a place in the Cup final.
"I trialled Old Spice at Albion Park before the heats and he only clocked 30.30sec with a first split of 5.60sec so you can see how much he improved with a look at the track.
"Old Spice has box two in the final so is well drawn but I'm a realist," he said. "I know that for my dog to win Dyna Double One, who has box four, is probably going to have to find some trouble.
"(Appin's) Jason Fletcher has qualified with Fantastic Spiral so hopefully one of us will bring the trophy back to NSW.''
On Thursday Priest also produced a promising unraced maiden, Sublime Sull, who sped over 400m in a Maitland performance trial in a slick 22.60.
"Sublime Sull has a big future but his litter sister, Saucy Sull, which I also train, is even quicker,'' Priest said.
"Saucy Sull has not yet made her first public appearance but isn't far away from the racetracks.
"These pups are only 19 months old and were produced by Sull's Girl, who once held the first section record at Maitland and had early speed to burn.''
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Knocka's Return and Natural Player have won 35 and 34 races respectively for their owner-trainer-breeder Mark Wilcox but six puppies from their dam Winning Shiraz's latest litter could be even better.
While Knocka's Return and Natural Player are by Knocka Norris from Winning Shiraz, Sweetwater Boy, who posted a brilliant 25.04 winning over 450m at Maitland on Thursday, is by Magic Sprite.
"Sweetwater Boy is not necessarily the best in his litter, in fact that there is hardly anything between all six of them,'' Wilcox said.
"Winning Secret was the fastest qualifier for the recent Globe Memorial Maiden final at Richmond and Combined Effort, another from the Magic Sprite litter, has won three of four starts.
"While the Knocka's Return and Natural Player litter excelled on big tracks, this new litter comprises perfect Wentworth Park dogs.
"They are all mad railers so I now intend preparing them at Dapto before bringing them to Wentworth Park.''
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Glen Quirk registered an outstanding maiden win at Dapto on Thursday with the previously unraced Cawbourne Web winning over 520m in 29.87.
A daughter of Dyna Lachlan and Asterix, Cawbourne Web is owned by Stuart Dickinson who secured the greyhound after doing a deal on sharing the progeny of the dam, who is owned by Clinton Payne.
"Asterix's previous litter includes Cawbourne Brick, who was runner-up in last week's New Zealand Cup,'' Dickinson said.
Dickinson's former top flight NZ stayer Cawbourne Bright, also trained by Glen Quirk, is on the comeback trail after injuring the tendons in a wrist at Wentworth Park on November 7.
Cawbourne Bright had won 20 of 47 NZ starts before finishing a promising second to Wild Fire in her Australian debut at Wentworth Park on October 31.
Dickinson had been keen to send Cawbourne Bright to Victoria for the group one Bold Trease heats at Sandown on November 13 but the wrist injury forced him to abandon that plan.
"Cawbourne Bright is trialling well again and should be back racing again in a week or two,'' Dickinson said.
