20/04/2016  Happy Valley  Race 1

H W Lai (BORNFREE) was fined the sum of $2,000 for presenting himself to be weighed out with the incorrect saddle cloth number. SWEET BEAN began awkwardly and lost ground. VIVA GUY and MI SAVVY BOY bumped heavily at the start, resulting in both horses becoming badly unbalanced. RUGBY AMBASSADOR was checked on jumping when crowded for room between GOOD FIT and FRESH AND FRESH which shifted out. In this incident, GOOD FIT shifted out after being bumped by RUGBY AMBASSADOR, resulting in LOYAL CRAFTSMAN being crowded for room. GOLD TARTINI began only fairly. Near the 1700 Metres, GOOD FIT was awkwardly placed close to the heels of MI SAVVY BOY when momentarily crowded for room between that horse and LOYAL CRAFTSMAN, both of which shifted ground. Approaching the winning post on the first occasion, MI SAVVY BOY was steadied to avoid the heels of GLAMOROUS RYDER (Apprentice K K Chiong) which shifted in when not properly clear. Apprentice Chiong was severely reprimanded and advised to ensure that she is properly clear when shifting ground in future. Near the 1050 Metres, LOYAL CRAFTSMAN shifted out and bumped GOOD FIT. MIZZEN GREY raced wide and without cover until near the 600 Metres at which time it shifted in to race outside the lead. After the 300 Metres, BORNFREE raced tight inside MIZZEN GREY which got its head on the side and lay in under pressure. Passing the 200 Metres, GOLD TARTINI was brushed by SWEET BEAN when disappointed for running between that horse which shifted in and GLAMOROUS RYDER. MI SAVVY BOY shifted ground under pressure on a number of occasions in the Straight. When questioned, M L Yeung stated that he had been instructed that if COOL PAL began well, he should allow the horse to use its natural speed and obtain a forward position, however, not to ride the horse along to go forward. He said he was further instructed that if COOL PAL began only fairly, he should attempt to obtain a position in midfield with cover. He said COOL PAL was fractious in the barriers and began awkwardly and for this reason he felt that to obtain a forward position would have required COOL PAL to be ridden along, therefore he steadied the horse shortly after the start and attempted to obtain a position with cover. He added when being steadied in order to be shifted in, COOL PAL proved difficult to settle and due to the make-up of the field, in the run to the first turn he was not able to obtain a midfield position and had to steady COOL PAL towards the rear of the field to find cover. He said during this time COOL PAL continued to prove difficult to settle until about the 1300 Metres. Trainer A Lee confirmed that he had instructed M L Yeung to go forward on COOL PAL if the horse began well, however, as COOL PAL had run well previously after missing the start, he did not want it to be ridden aggressively to go forward and therefore he had asked Jockey Yeung to obtain cover in the early stages and if the opportunity presented itself, to make a mid-race move which the horse had also done successfully in the past. He expressed the opinion that M L Yeung could have provided COOL PAL with a better opportunity to go forward in the early stages rather than seeking to obtain cover shortly after the start. M L Yeung was advised that, in the opinion of the Stewards, he should have made a far greater effort than he did on this occasion to allow COOL PAL the opportunity to obtain a forward position in the early stages. He was also told that he would be expected in future to make appropriate endeavour to comply with his instructions. A veterinary inspection of LOYAL CRAFTSMAN immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. GOLD TARTINI, GLAMOROUS RYDER and BORNFREE were sent for sampling.