Noted French sire almost sweeps Melton features

The champion French racehorse and sire Love You and Ballarat breeder Pat Driscoll stole the harness racing show from a breeding standpoint at the all trotting meeting at Melton last Saturday.

Love You, who had nine runners on Team Teal Night, sired the winners of three of the four feature events in Keayang Chucky (Australasian Trotting Championship), Queen Elida (Lyn McPherson Memorial Breed For Speed Gold) and Our Marvella (Lyn McPherson Memorial Breed For Speed Silver Series Final).

While, Driscoll, the principal of Haras Des Trotteurs stud, which distribute the frozen semen of Love You to Australian breeders, bred a winning double with Keayang Chucky and Keayang Lavita.

He also owns the American-bred mare Nabrina, the impressive winner of the Lyn McPherson Memorial Breed For Speed Bronze Series Final.

Driscoll bought the Father Patrick mare at the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale in 2021 for a hefty $US105,000, then shipped her to Australia and had her broken in at his farm. She was originally trained by Anton Golino and was later transferred to Jess Tubbs and Greg Sugars.

Magic Woman, her unraced dam, is a Kadabra half-sister to the 2012 Hambletonian Oaks winner Personal Style and a member of a family chock full of ‘black type’ square-gaiters.

Nabrina, who has won two of her last three starts, looks a trotter with the potential one would expect of her breeding.

Other winners on the night were Watts Up Partytime (by Majestic Son) and Timmy Turtle (by Skyvalley).

Birkirkara, a four-year-old bred by HRV Board member Dennis Bice and his wife Brenda, became the latest member of the ‘1:50 Club’ at Menangle last Saturday

The broodmare Maastricht, owned by Sharyn Munnerley-Jose and her husband Greg, produced a double on consecutive nights with Shazza Love (Ballarat) and Its Maa Time (Gloucester Park)

Colourful Western Districts horseman John Meade, who brought out the star trotter Sparkling Success, is enjoying a good run with the gelding’s half-brother Mattyo, a winner at Stawell recently

by Peter Wharton, for Harness Racing Victoria