"BACK TO BASICS" ROYALIFY BACK IN WINNING FORM
- John Curtis
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
The skilled Hawkesbury horseman made a number of gear changes on a resuming Royalify, who burst back to winning form on Newcastle’s inner Beaumont track yesterday.
Ridden by Winona Costin and starting at $8.50, Royalify upset Gosford trainer Jake Hull’s $2.20 favorite Lord Vettori in the Class 1 Handicap (1200m).
To say the now five-year-old son of Justify has been something of an enigma is not telling an untruth.
“Royalify works like a good horse, but then you got disappointed when he didn’t reproduce that in his races,” O’Halloran said today.
“He went out after racing at Kembla Grange at the end of May, and came back to my stable the best he has ever looked.
“I tried different types of gear with him, but remarkably he had won only one race (a 1400m Maiden Handicap at Bathurst on Anzac Day at $10) until yesterday.
“Royalify trialled really well at home when second to fellow Hawkesbury trainer Terry Croft’s good mare Zoutastic, who won easily first-up earlier in the month.
“I didn’t tell Winona anything about him before he trialled, and she came back and said he was a city class horse.
“I decided to take all the gear (blinkers, off side bubble cheeker and pre-race ear muffs) off, and start from scratch.
“Winona gave him a great ride and now that he has won his second race, he seems to have matured and hopefully can go on with the job.
“Royalify still has a low benchmark rating, and remains eligible for suitable country races.
“I feel he is best on the fresh side, and will space his runs and try to take him through his classes.”
Without the necessary “cattle”, it’s been a quiet first part of the season for O’Halloran, with Royalify being his second winner since August 1 (and career 32nd).”
However, things are poised to take a turn for the better.
Royalify’s first-up success came as O’Halloran’s stable star Mal Coupe edges closer to a trial as his trainer readies him for another campaign, which he hopes will lead to further wins in town.
Mal Coupe rattled off three on the trot before heading for a break, beginning with a Benchmark 68 Handicap (1100m) triumph at home on July 3 followed by victories in a Canterbury 3YO Benchmark 64 Handicap (1100m) on July 23 and Rosehill Gardens Benchmark 78 Handicap (1100m) on August 16.
“The form out of his last win has been really good (third placegetter Catch The Glory won at Rosehill a fortnight later, and first-up defeated subsequent Brisbane winner The Black Cloud in the Group 3 The Warra, 1000m at The Gong meeting at Kembla Grange last month),” O’Halloran said.
“Mal Couple looks to have come back really well, and I will most likely trial him twice before taking him back to town to chase that fourth win on end.”
