Box positions for Thursday night's $25,000 to the winner final of the inaugural GRNSW Middle Distance Championship at Dapto favour siblings and kennelmates Rockstar Melody and Rockstar Prince but Sorry Scott's connections believe the draw has "opened up'' the 600m race.
The Andrea Dailly-trained Rockstar Melody and Rockstar Prince drew boxes one and two respectively, with fastest heat winner Slingshot Hammer drawing five.
Sorry Scott (pictured), whose heat time was a mere .01sec slower than Slingshot Hammer's time standard, drew box eight.
Adam Crouch, whose father Andrew trains Sorry Scott, said: "We wanted box one but the eight is not too bad, we could certainly have been a lot worse off.
"She will handle the wide draw but she has to begin really well to be able to get across her opponents.
"Obviously Rockstar Melody and Rockstar Prince are going to be hard to beat from boxes one and two and if Slingshot Hammer comes out as fast as he did in his heat he can easily overcome box five.
"The draw has thrown the race wide open.''
xxxx
Rockstar Melody and Rockstar Prince are trained in Victoria but were bred and are owned by Sydney's Shaun Evans and Chris Nutt.
"Because she has box one and is positioned inside Rockstar Prince in two, Rockstar Melody looks the pick of our pair,'' Nutt said.
"But Rockstar Prince has always been a bit quicker than his litter sister Rockstar Melody and if he got a clear run and sat close behind her in the early stages, he is capable of running her down.
"Rockstar Melody has been 'crying out' for a middle or long distance for quite a while so we weren't surprised when she took ground off Slingshot Hammer at the finish of her 600m heat.
"Shaun and I have always believed Rockstar Melody could be our next top class stayer and she is shaping up that way.
"Slingshot Hammer is still going to be hard to toss because he has early pace and although he has drawn five, there is not much speed inside him.
"And we are not ruling out Sorry Scott, although she will need to come out quickly to be able find the rails from box eight.''
xxxx
Grafton trainer Stephen Keep landed a winning treble at his local track on Monday night but it was a performance trial by his dog Sparky Boy which really excited him.
Sparky Boy turns three next March but remains unraced after contesting performance trials in April, June, and on Monday.
"I was setting him for the Grafton Maiden Classic at the July carnival and he was looking good when he trialled 23sec flat for the 407m there,'' Keep said.
"But then Sparky Boy dropped a back leg muscle so I had to put him out in the paddock and hope for the best.
"After two months pottering around the injury had healed and the dog is flying again.
"Last week Sparky Boy clocked 14.70 in a 259m trial at Lismore and that is airborne.
"Then he covered the 305m in Monday's performance trial in 17.30, which is not far outside the track record.
"I now plan to get him ready for the Ladbrokes Lismore Maiden Classic series on December 10 and 17.''
Keep's three winners on Monday included his wonderful sprinter Copperhead Rogue, who has now had 27 starts for 12 wins, 10 seconds and three thirds.
"I have got several trebles over the years and managed to win four races one night,'' Keep summed up.
