A stone bruise was the reason behind Murrayfield bypassing the Group 3 Committee's Prize (1600m) last Sunday in favour of the easier Kranji Stakes C race over the same distance this Friday.
While such an ailment would be a setback for any horse, trainer Stephen Gray said it worked out good in the end as he was left with only one runner in the Committee's Prize, Twickenham, and he turned out to be the victor, albeit in a nail-biter.
Now the best-case scenario would be for Murrayfield – who is also raced by Twickenham's owner Paul Hickman, undoubtedly a rugby fan – to in turn salute in the $80,000 race labelled as The Austcham Cup. Going with Gray's level of confidence, it may well happen even if Murrayfield will have to overcome a smart field made up of the likes of Shanghai Bund, Gilt Complex and Robin Hood.
"He was a question mark for the Committee's Prize as he had a stone bruise, and besides I couldn't get a rider for him," said Gray.
"In the end, we did not get too carried away, and decided not to run him. It became a good chance for the other horse (Twickenham)."
Gray then spotted Friday's race as the ideal make-up event for the Pins four-year-old, who was last time left with too much to do as the even-money favourite when eventual winner White Hunter slowed up the speed to a canter-sprint and shot away in a BM67 race over 1400m on August 21.
"He's okay at the handicap I guess. There are others who are worse off," said the Kiwi handler as he skimmed through his Friday assignment.
"The 1400m didn't suit him at his last run. I wanted to run him in a 1600m race but they cancelled the race.
"The winner had a headstart on him over a leader's track. He made good ground but could only finish second.
"The Short E Course did not suit back runners like him, anyway."
Gray said he had always held a solid opinion of Murrayfield from the day he first walked into his yard, even if he had to bide his time for a while.
"He's a nice little horse who had a few issues when he first came to me," he recalled.
"I remember he was galloped on after a race and that put him back, but he's come back good since."
Murrayfield, who has raced exclusively on turf, boasts a handy record of three wins between 1400m and 1600m at Kranji, is a horse who could be Gray's Singapore Derby (2000m) contender next year if he keeps going through his grades.
"He's a Pins and they are generally tough horses. He will show more potential over more ground," said Gray.
"He's bred to stay, but let's not get too carried away. He's still got some way to go.
"He's up against some handy horses on Friday and let's see how he has matured and how he measures up first."
Murrayfield will be ridden by Vlad Duric, Gray's Committee's Prize winning rider aboard Twickenham, and has drawn barrier two, which would normally please any trainer, but Gray just shrugged it off.
"He's drawn two, but it doesn't really matter to him as he's a horse who doesn't like to race handy," he said.
"What he needs is a genuine tempo and if he gets one, he will have a good chance." -STC
While such an ailment would be a setback for any horse, trainer Stephen Gray said it worked out good in the end as he was left with only one runner in the Committee's Prize, Twickenham, and he turned out to be the victor, albeit in a nail-biter.
Now the best-case scenario would be for Murrayfield – who is also raced by Twickenham's owner Paul Hickman, undoubtedly a rugby fan – to in turn salute in the $80,000 race labelled as The Austcham Cup. Going with Gray's level of confidence, it may well happen even if Murrayfield will have to overcome a smart field made up of the likes of Shanghai Bund, Gilt Complex and Robin Hood.
"He was a question mark for the Committee's Prize as he had a stone bruise, and besides I couldn't get a rider for him," said Gray.
"In the end, we did not get too carried away, and decided not to run him. It became a good chance for the other horse (Twickenham)."
Gray then spotted Friday's race as the ideal make-up event for the Pins four-year-old, who was last time left with too much to do as the even-money favourite when eventual winner White Hunter slowed up the speed to a canter-sprint and shot away in a BM67 race over 1400m on August 21.
"He's okay at the handicap I guess. There are others who are worse off," said the Kiwi handler as he skimmed through his Friday assignment.
"The 1400m didn't suit him at his last run. I wanted to run him in a 1600m race but they cancelled the race.
"The winner had a headstart on him over a leader's track. He made good ground but could only finish second.
"The Short E Course did not suit back runners like him, anyway."
Gray said he had always held a solid opinion of Murrayfield from the day he first walked into his yard, even if he had to bide his time for a while.
"He's a nice little horse who had a few issues when he first came to me," he recalled.
"I remember he was galloped on after a race and that put him back, but he's come back good since."
Murrayfield, who has raced exclusively on turf, boasts a handy record of three wins between 1400m and 1600m at Kranji, is a horse who could be Gray's Singapore Derby (2000m) contender next year if he keeps going through his grades.
"He's a Pins and they are generally tough horses. He will show more potential over more ground," said Gray.
"He's bred to stay, but let's not get too carried away. He's still got some way to go.
"He's up against some handy horses on Friday and let's see how he has matured and how he measures up first."
Murrayfield will be ridden by Vlad Duric, Gray's Committee's Prize winning rider aboard Twickenham, and has drawn barrier two, which would normally please any trainer, but Gray just shrugged it off.
"He's drawn two, but it doesn't really matter to him as he's a horse who doesn't like to race handy," he said.
"What he needs is a genuine tempo and if he gets one, he will have a good chance." -STC