STABLE UPDATE - Godolphin Report from John O'Shea

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John O'Shea reports on runners from the Godolphin stable at Caulfield and Randwick on February 4.

CAULFIELD SATURDAY

RACE 7- Manfred Stakes (1200m)

MORTON’S FORK (Craig Williams): “The only time he’s missed a place he was very unlucky and he confirmed that by going on to win the Sandown Guineas. The Australian Guineas is his target. I expect him to run well on Saturday, but he’ll be better for the run.”

TRENCHANT (Ben Melham): “He came through the same race at Caulfield as Morton’s Fork and ran well without much luck. All going well, he’ll also go to the Australian Guineas. He’s done all his racing in Melbourne and has won a stakes race down there, so he’ll probably stay there this prep.”

RANDWICK SATURDAY

RACE 2 - Hinchinbrook Plate (1100m)

VERANILLO (James Doyle): “He showed us a lot of promise when he won in the spring and he trialled quite nicely last week. He’s on trial for a Golden Slipper run and will have one more lead up run, probably in the Skyline. At this stage he’s in the top five of our two-year-olds.

RACE 6 - Eskimo Prince Stakes (1200m)

BEZEL (James Doyle): “He didn’t have very long off and has come back in good shape. His trial last week was pretty quiet and he might need the run on Saturday. He’s on track for the Randwick Guineas which looks the right race for him and he’ll run in the Hobartville Stakes in two weeks-time.”

BRYNEICH (Brenton Avdulla): “He put up a big performance to win like he did the other night. To be fair, he probably had a few things in his favour, a fitness advantage, so it wasn’t a huge surprise. But very pleasing at the same time. We’ve also got the Randwick Guineas in mind for him. He’s obviously a bit sharper at this stage than Bezel, we’ll see how he comes through Saturday and then decide where we go.

RACE 7- Breeders Classic (1200m)

CIRCULAR (Brenton Avdulla): “She showed plenty of promise last prep and did a great job. We’ve got a couple of nice stakes races in mind for her over the next few weeks. At this stage the Coolmore isn’t on the agenda. She’s had a nice, quiet trial and will probably come on from Saturday’s race.”