Victory earns a well-deserved break

The season for Miss Papenhuyzen is over, with trainer Rohan Hillier confirming the daughter of Sweet Lou is heading to the spelling paddock after her 24.9m win in Sunday night’s Blue Bonnet in Hobart.

Backed in from $1.40 into $1.08, Miss Papenhuyzen was allowed to settle one-out and two-back in the early stages before reinsman Conor Crook took the pacer to the lead in the middle stages of the race.

From there, the race was a procession, with the filly putting up a handy margin at the 400m to race away from her rivals which included Watch The Attitude, who caught the eye doing her best work late and Desynchronosis in 1m 59.9s.

The race wasn’t originally on the raider for Miss Papenhuyzen, with connections reconsidering their plans after her Group 2 Evicus win on 20 October.

“We were going to tip her out after the Evicus but with that meeting moved to the Wednesday, it was only 10-days to the Blue Bonnet, so she will go to the paddock now for three or four months, maybe longer,” said Rohan Hillier post-race.

The win was the third victory at start nine for Miss Papenhuyzen, who would be the favourite for the Tasmanian Two-Year-Old Filly of the Year with feature race wins in the Evicus (Group 2), Blue Bonnett and a second placing in the Sweepstakes Final.

Hillier landed a training double on the Hobart card when he drove Ryley Major to score in the St Virgils Football Club Discretionary over 2579m.

The Art Major gelding, who was $2.15 out to $2.40, showed his customary brilliant standing start manners off his 20-metre handicap to settle one-out one-back, before being produced three-wide at the 450m to pip the $1.95 favourite Watchmylips who led throughout.

“If he didn’t lob one-one early, then he probably doesn’t win in it given the time they ran off the front,” said Hillier about the win.

The overall time for the 2579m was 3m 14.9s, which was quicker than his 2020 Tasmania Cup that he ran in 3m 16.9s from a 30m handicap.

“He still is nowhere near 100 percent wound up yet,” Hillier disclosed.

The trainer indicated the Danbury Park Cup would likely be the pacers next assignment.

Meanwhile, leading Tasmanian and Australian trainer, Ben Yole, took his season total to 199 wins after a training treble with the wins of Deadly Assassin, Tarleton Riley and Arden Roanoke.

Yole’s next training win will see him become the first trainer in the two equine codes on the Apple Isle to record 200 wins in a season.

The feat has been achieved multiple times in the greyhound code, with research from this writer believing the greyhound record is 213 held by Anthony Bullock in the 2019 season.

To view the results from Hobart on Sunday click here.