Waikouaiti pacer Arma Twospoons completed her journey from the hillside to the winner’s circle at Gore on Saturday.
The Daniel Reardon-trained 5yr-old scored her maiden victory for driver Matthew Williamson on the Gore grass track. Before her current preparation, Arma Twospoons had spent two years out of training on the hills of Scargill in North Canterbury, Reardon said.
Reardon brought the horse back into work with a view to giving her an opportunity to show her worth and she repaid him in just her second start at the races on Saturday.
Arma Twospoons’ victory was the second win Reardon has registered since moving to Waikouaiti late last year. The horseman trained and drove Doc Seelster to win on the grass at Geraldine earlier this month.
Doc Seelster ran into third from a hopeless position on the markers at Gore on Saturday.
That race was won by Mighty Empire for Waikouaiti trainer Amber Hoffman and driver Matthew Williamson.
Reardon’s small team’s red-hot form on grass could make him a trainer to follow on his home track’s two-day meeting later this month.
Southland star Somejoy showed no ill effects from her clash with some of the country’s best pacing mares with her win at Gore on Saturday.
Drawing the outside of the back row on the mobile was not enough to stop the Clark Barron-trained pacer from claiming a comfortable victory over inferior opposition.
Somejoy ran seventh, beaten less than four lengths by Bonnie Joan, in the group 2 Premier Mares Championship at Addington earlier this month.
The performance confirmed to her trainer that despite her class, she was a notch below the country’s best female pacers.
"She went good but it is our third attempt with them now and we are just not quite up to them.
"She is stronger this year, but obviously everyone else is too — we have run fifth in the Southland Oaks, seventh in the Nevele R final and seventh last week."
Instead of heading north to again clash with Bonnie Joan, Somejoy will be focused on feature races in Southland for the rest of the season.
"We are lucky she is in the Southern Belle Speed Series so we will focus on that.
"We haven’t looked at anything else at this stage, but she could target the Country Cups final."
Blair Orange went close to winning the Gore Grass Cup with Star Commander but the horse’s slow start proved costly. The 3yr-old was collared late by the Brendon McLellan-trained and driven Pass The Speights.
Gore’s feature trot was also won by a trainer-driver when Sundon’s Wish won for Ian Jamieson.
