Harness Racing Victoria form guru Craig Rail has had his eye on the Victorian trial circuit during the past week and provides his regular report below.
COBRAM 16/04/26
Trial 1: – ISTANBUL began quickly to lead and set up a slow tempo in the early stages. She was challenged in the home straight but kept on kicking and was able to cling on and get the prize. VOLDAGHA settled five back on the markers, moved off the inside at the 600m mark and chased hard. It appeared as he was going to land the money in the straight but he just failed to overhaul ISTANBUL in the run to the judge. He is resuming at Shepparton on Tuesday night. HELEN JAY JAY finished in third after trailing the leader throughout. MUNNY THE MUNSTER settled three back on the markers and went to the line strongly with no clear run. He should go well when resuming at Shepparton on Tuesday night. NINE settled four back on the markers, moved into the one out and one back trail at the 300m and never peeled to the outside at any stage.
Mile Rate: – 2.8.7 Last Half: – 61.9 Margins: – Nose, 1m
Trial 2: – SEA FURY NZ began fast to find the lead and ran along at a rapid rate. He remained strong over the latter stages and produced an impressive display. He takes on a very tough field in the Coolamon Cup on Sunday afternoon. SHARP INTEREST trailed the leader throughout and came to the outside on the home turn. He tried hard but couldn’t peg back the margin late. He is backing up at Charlton on Monday afternoon. DEL RAY settled four back on the inside and picked up ABERCROMBIE LIMBO (3 back markers) in the battle for third and fourth but both horses were beaten by a large margin.
Mile Rate: – 1.57.4 Last Half: – 56.8 Margins: – 2m, Distanced
CRANBOURNE 19/04/26
Trial 1: – ROMEO trailed the leader in the early stages, moved around to find the lead at the 1200m and was able to score untouched in the run to the finish. He is a quality pacer and should have a good campaign. SOLS ME NAME settled last of the three runners, waited for the sprint lane and picked up ground late for second. PATIRO NZ led out, took cover at the 1200m and never peeled to the outside at any stage. He finished last of the trio but he appeared to have something in reserve and is backing up at Melton tomorrow night.
Mile Rate: – 2.1.9 Last Half: – 57.4 Margins: – 3.5m, 2m
BLACKBOOKER: – Romeo
Trial 2: – THE PREACHER trailed the leader, came to the outside with 300m remaining and went to the line with plenty in reserve as an easy winner. MAJESTIC CHARMA settled three back on the markers, waited for the sprint lane and rolled into second. The early leader WALKING ON WATER was last of the three runners across the line.
Mile Rate: – 2.5.6 Last Half: – 59.9 Margins: – 9.5m, 4m
MARYBOROUGH 20/04/26
Trial 1: – WOODVILLE FLYER is an unraced mare for trainer Stephen Clarke and was able to take out the opening trial of the day. She is beautifully bred being by Soho Tribeca out of Aussie Made Lombo (1.55.1, $578,456), a Group 1 winning daughter of the champion mare Tailamade Lombo (1.55.3, $1,354,978). He finished off in a reasonable last half to comfortably defeat ROMAN SCRITTORE, an unraced gelding by Sportswriter out of Dancing In Roma NZ (1.59.7, $31,295), the dam of five winners including the $100,000+ earners Shark Dancer (1.52.5, $131,934) and Sporty Dancer (1.53.1, $141,678). The leading pair finished a long way clear of the third placed ROCKNROLL ROSANNA. The winner WOODVILLE FLYER will be making her debut at Charlton on Sunday and ROCKNROLL ROSANNA competed at Ballarat on Thursday night.
Mile Rate: – 2.1.0 Last Half: – 58.2 Margins: – 3m, 50m
Trial 2: – RONAN is a colt by Sweet Lou for trainer Mark Hayes, which continues to improve at the trials. He was able to pick up a victory over RAVISHING ROXY, which is an unraced filly by Art Major that put in her best trial performance from three attempts and is heading to the races for the first time at Charlton on Sunday. IM STARVING finished a close up third in what was a good finish and COCOSWORLD was last of the four runners across the line.
Mile Rate: – 2.0.2 Last Half: – 57.6 Margins: – Neck, Head
Trial 3: – HALLEBESOFINE backed up her excellent trial second a week earlier when she scored by a comfortable margin over the handy performer RAKERO WARRIOR NZ. It was an even tempo throughout and she was able to prove superior at the finish. LITTLER finished in a distant third ahead of BILLYSOPHIA. BILLYSOPHIA is backing up at Ararat on Monday night.
Mile Rate: – 2.3.7 Last Half: – 60.4 Margins: – 6m, 60m
GEELONG 20/04/26
Trial 1: – BANDIT EYES has returned to Victoria after a stint with Bailey McDonough in New South Wales. He began quickly to find his favourite role as being the pacemaker and was always in control of the trial, winning by a comfortable margin with something in reserve. SPRINGFIELD RIVER was last of the duo after sitting in the trail throughout.
Mile Rate: – 2.1.3 Last Half: – 58.1 Margin: 10m
Trial 2: – LETITRIDELUV is a juvenile colt for trainer Courtney Slater, which had his first trial before the season commenced. He settled three back on the inside, came away from the markers at the 500m and hit the front at the 300m. He scored comfortably and finished off in slick final sectionals so it was a sharp performance. BIG CAT ORO settled four back on the markers, gained a one out and one back trail at the 500m and tried hard in the straight for second. MONARCH began quickly and got into the position behind the leader. He battled on fairly for third. He is by Rock N Roll Heaven out of the good mare Endeared (1.56.7, $244,650), which has produced six winners, three $100,000+ earners including The Dapper Don (1.55.5, $101,779), the handy trotter Enrolled (1.59.0, $131,667) and Elusive (1.52.5, $136,387). PONTIAN GIRL was the last one across the line after setting the speed.
Mile Rate: – 2.2.6 Last Half: – 57.4 Margins: – 6m, 5m
Trial 4: – JAKEE BOY trailed the leader, came to the outside at the 700m and quickly dashed to the front. He was able to sustain the run and scored in slow time. He is competing at Melton this evening. AMESKY was second across the line after settling last of the four runners and making ground late. ACE DAN settled three back on the markers and finished in third with the early leader SONS GOTABITE being the last horse across the line.
Mile Rate: – 2.9.5 Last Half: – 61.4 Margins: – 4m, 3m
Trial 5: – KING OF NORMANDY appeared to be impressive at his first trial appearance. He led out, took cover and came to the outside with 600m remaining. He dashed to the front and was untouched going to the line. He did break stride right on the line so he is still learning but he appears to have a promising future. FREMARKSMARVEL began quickly and was without cover early before pushing forward to find the lead. He was run down at the end but put in an honest display. CARTACALHA settled five back on the inside, and worked home reasonably well over the latter stages. EAGLESTONE settled four back on the markers, broke stride at the 300m and lost his winning chance. FREMARKS STREAKA is a juvenile trotter, which performed at the trials before the turn of the season back in November. He settled three back on the inside, broke stride on the home turn and lost his chance.
Mile Rate: – 2.5.9 Last Half: – 60.5 Margins: – 5m, 5m
TERANG 21/04/26
Trial 1: – BOBBYS ROOM NZ is an unraced New Zealand bred pacer for trainer Jeff McLean. He is by Bettor’s Delight out of Delizioso (1.56.6, $30,960), which has produced five winners including the classy performers Italian Lad (1.52.4, $252,984) and Rakero Blaze (1.58.0, $178,676). The second dam Vain Franco produced ten winners including the outstanding mare Under Cover Lover (1.51.8, $864,923) so he has very strong breeding and considering he won the trial in fast time, he is worth following. EL LAZZAR had a trial at Newcastle with trainer Darren Elder and has since joined Matthew Craven. He finished in second on his way to Charlton on Sunday just ahead of SWEETHEART DIOR. METRO BLISS and JILLIBY UTAH finished fourth and fifth respectively.
Mile Rate: – 1.58.7 Last Half: – 58.4 Margins: – 6m, head
BLACKBOOKER: – Bobbys Room NZ
Trial 3: – MUFASA BART was resuming since June when unplaced at Terang on March 02. He is the winner of seven races and boasts a personal best time of 1.53.5 so he is a quality pacer when at his peak. He was able to dash home in a slick final quarter of 27.9 seconds to win the trial over the juvenile PERFECTLY ROGUE, which was having her first trial. She is by Captaintreacherous out of Perfectly Written (1.55.6, $74,194), which won the 2015 Homegrown Classic at Melton. She has produced two winners in Resurrects (1.57.4, $42,710) and Perfect Gamble (1.57.7, $12,702). The time of the trial was handy and she took on a proven race winner so she might be worth following. STORMY LIMITS wasn’t far away in third position.
Mile Rate: – 2.1.4 Last Half: – 58.7 Margins: – 6m, Head
BLACKBOOKER: – Perfectly Rogue
Trial 4: – BOULEVARD BART hasn’t raced since contesting a heat of the Victoria Derby in October but he has obviously come back in good order considering he zipped home in a very fast final quarter to win the trial. LE CARDINAL also raced against good opposition last season and his last performance was an eleventh in the Super Series Final back in November. The leading pair drew well clear of ISTHISTHEREALLIFE and KEAYANG QUEENIE, which finished third and fourth respectively. ISTHISTHEREALLIFE is making her debut at Ararat on Monday night.
Mile Rate: – 2.2.4 Last Half: – 58.4 Margins: – 3m, 8m
Trial 6: – KEAYANG BAZLENKA hasn’t started since winning the Breeders Crown Final in December. He had an outstanding 2025 season with six wins and a second from seven attempts and was able to win comfortably in his comeback trial so the future appears to be bright. JILLIBY DREAMLOVER is an outstanding mare, which won a heat of the Great Southern Star at the beginning of the season and hasn’t raced since a seventh in the Grand Prix. She finished second and was clear of the impressive last start Bendigo winner THE PRIESTESS with KEAYANG KURKI being last of the four runners across the line in a quality trial. JILLIBY DREAMLOVER and KEAYANG KURKI are both competing at Melton tomorrow night while THE PRIESTESS is travelling up to Sydney to race at Menangle.
Mile Rate: – 2.2.4 Last Half: – 58.4 Margins: – 3m, 8m
Trial 7: – The final trial was for the juvenile trotters and each of the runners were having their first trial attempt. BUMPER CROP won by a large margin for trainer Antti Ruokonen. She is by On A Streak out of the classy mare Kinvara Sue (1.58.2, $163,890), which has produced the race winner Kinvara Kate (2.2.1). ALDEBARAN ANGELA finished in second. She is by Dancinginthedark M out of the unraced mare Aldebaran Ariana and is the first foal. The second dam Aspenglow USA produced five winners including Cold Sister USA (1.57.2, $262,321), which performed very well in Australia for trainer David Aiken. JILLIBY CONNECTION was the third horse across the line. She is by Classic Connection out of the speedy mare Norquay (1.56.2, $122,640) and is the first foal. KEAYANG JUNIOR was last of the quartet across the line. He is by Used To Me out of Maori Daunou, the unraced daughter of champion mare Sumthingaboutmaori (2.0.9, $461,499), which has produced three winners including the classy performers Maorisfavouritesun (1.55.1, $214,574) and Maori’s Mac (1.56.7, $197,180).
Mile Rate: – 2.6.7 Last Half: – 60.9 Margins: – 20m, 3m
MELTON ENTERTAINMENT PARK 21/04/26
Trial 1: – OLLIVICI NZ won the open class trotting event to commence the program. He led throughout and won untouched. ROCKINWITHATTITUDE sat in the trail and came to the outside with 400m remaining. She also went to the line with plenty in reserve in a trial that was just like track work. ROCKINWITHATTITUDE is scheduled to compete at Melton on Saturday night. GATESYS GEM galloped early and lost approximately 50m. He took advantage of a slow tempo to catch up with the group, used the sprint lane and wasn’t beaten by far as the judge called a halt.
Mile Rate: – 2.8.3 Last Half: – 59.9 Margins: – ½ Head, 2m
Trial 4: – TED BEAR has transferred from trainer Kyle Marshall to Andy Gath since his last run back in November. He began well from a wide draw and angled across into a trailing position on the markers. He switched deep into the sprint lane in the home straight and finished fast to pick up victory on the line. The final quarter was slow but it was visually a good performance. HOLD ON FOREVER trailed the leader from the inside of the second line and used the sprint lane. He missed out by a narrow margin. BOUNCED finished a close up third after attempting to lead throughout. TRICODE settled in fifth and picked up ground to run a close up fourth.
Mile Rate: – 2.1.9 Last Half: – 61.4 Margins: – ½ head, 1/2neck
Trial 5: – ABOUTTIME won the open class trial. He settled three back on the markers, came to the outside at the 600m mark and sustained a good run in fast final sectionals to win the trial. KARTIARE settled last of the five runners, angled wide on the home turn and finished off boldly for a game second. WOTDIDUSAAAY trailed the leader throughout and finished in third. VINCENZO settled four back on the markers, moved into the one out and one back trail behind ABOUTTIME in the back straight and finished in fourth. He is competing at Melton on Saturday night. DANCE AFFAIR was last of the five runners across the line after attempting to lead throughout.
Mile Rate: – 1.58.7 Last Half: – 55.4 Margins: – 6m, 5.5m
Trial 6: – TEERDEE was five back on the markers then four back and angled wide on the home turn. She was still several lengths behind the leaders with 100m remaining but produced a big finishing burst to win the day. ROCK THE CAPTAIN raced without cover early and angled onto the markers to be three back shortly after the start. He came to the outside at the quarter pole and loomed as the winner but was run down on the line. MILEY KAY trailed the leader, came to the outside at the 600m and quickly ran to the top. She was run down in the straight but finished a close up third. SWAYWITHSIERRA was fourth across the line after setting the speed.
Mile Rate: – 2.2.8 Last Half: – 57.6 Margins: – ½ Head, 2.5m
Trial 7: – QUEEN OF SEAS began quickly to find the lead and backed off the tempo mid-race. She kicked away over the concluding stages and won with something in hand. BROTHER MOUNTAIN settled four back on the markers, came away from the inside at the quarter pole and worked into a distant second. WAITING FOR ANNA trailed the leader throughout and was the third horse across the line.
Mile Rate: – 2.5.9 Last Half: – 60.1 Margins: – 14m, 4.5m
BLACKBOOKER: – Queen Of Seas
Trial 8: – VERBICI continued his good trial form with a comfortable victory. He settled four back on the inside, moved up without cover at the 600m and continued his solid move over the latter stages to win clearly. PHOENIX REX finished in second after trailing the leader throughout. LOVE THAT BIRD began quickly to lead early, struck bother and picked up many lengths for a game third.
Mile Rate: – 2.2.9 Last Half: – 61.0 Margins: – 6.75m, 21m
