In just 30 seconds during the running of the Logical Staffing Solutions Tatlow Stakes on Saturday night, Daryl Douglas reminded racegoers that he sits comfortably among the premier reinsmen in the country.
Douglas was aboard the Julie Douglas-trained Ozzie Tart, who settled three horses back along the pegs behind the $2.20 favourite, Catch The Captain, who worked to the lead with 1600 metres to travel.
Douglas somehow extricated Ozzie Tart from the pegs at the 400-metre mark before running up behind the leaders around the home turn.
Douglas then veered back to the inside, where a gap appeared behind Catch The Captain, and he was able to secure a run back along the inside. Ozzie Tart ($6.50) charged through to grab victory by half a head.
After the race, Douglas revealed the filly overcame difficulties to win.
“She did a good job as she carried a flat tyre for the last 1000 metres of the race,” Douglas said.
“I had a bit of luck on the home turn when the gap opened up, when I really had nowhere to go, and then was able to get up along the inside,” he said.
With 4753 career wins beside his name, including 16 Group 1 victories, the 53-year-old Douglas has opted to combine his driving duties with full-time work for the past 10 years.
“It works for me and besides, I don’t get as many speeding fines these days,” he quipped.
The Steven Loftus-prepared Ghost Of Time firmly entrenched himself in the state’s open-class ranks when he scored an upset win, accounting for several multiple Group 1 winners in the Hygain Edge Free For All.
Sent out as the $21 outsider of the field behind the $1.95 favourite, Bulletproof Boy, Ghost Of Time settled three back along the pegs before Ryan Sanderson eased into the clear around the home turn.
Ghost Of Time produced a slick turn of foot in the home straight before getting the verdict on the line by half a head from Hes From Heaven, with Bulletproof Boy four metres away in third in a mile rate of 1:55.2.
Sanderson said the breaks went his way for a change.
“He probably hasn’t had a lot of luck in transit in his past few runs and things haven’t gone his way, but tonight, with the tempo that was on, with a nice pegs run and one last crack at them, he really swelled up nicely and gave it his best run,” Sanderson said.
Ghost Of Time was unplaced in two runs at Albion Park during a brief stint in Brisbane in August.
“He had a big trip to Queensland, so to see him come back and win and get back to the form that he was in last year is good for Steve and the team,” he said.
Talented three-year-old Enjoy Life made amends for his luckless Victoria Derby run when he scored an impressive win in the IRT The Graduate.
At his previous start in the Derby, Enjoy Life was travelling well before getting held up by the tiring leader Brooklyn Dan around the home turn and was beaten only five metres by Dynamitedan.
Sent out the short-priced $1.28 favourite, Enjoy Life settled three back in the running line towards the rear of the field before latching onto the back of Seaside Boy for a three-wide cart home.
Enjoy Life peeled four wide around the home turn before storming down the outside in the home straight, surging clear to score by six metres from stablemates Seaside Boy and Most Exciting in a mile rate of 1:55.6.
Driver James Herbertson opted to play the waiting game on the winner.
“We could have made a move earlier, but we would have had to come pretty hard, and I just thought he would be too good late,” Herbertson said.
“He just does everything easily. He was never really out of his comfort zone tonight, and he will go a long way,” he said.
The win completed a race-to-race double for Herbertson and trainer Emma Stewart after Fairplay took his record to six wins from his past seven starts by scoring in the Renown Silverware Pace.
PHOTOS: STU MCCORMICK
