Quentin Lang
Trainer Michael Moroney had been confident of a strong performance from Group Two performer Tofane leading into Saturday and the four-year-old mare did not disappoint.
The daughter of Ocean Park was second-up in the Pfd Food Services (1200m) at Moonee Valley and despite having to travel three-wide most of the trip, she had plenty in the tank to collar leader Haut Brion Hur (Zoustar) with 100m to go and went on to win by .3L.
“She got the right spot to a degree,” Moroney said. “I thought she did a really good job because he (jockey Michael Dee) tried to get in because he was always three wide but he kept her balanced.”
Tofane was coming off a last-start fourth at Sandown in August and Moroney admits there were excuses to that performance.
“We probably made a bit of a blue first up,” he said. “We were well aware we had to get through the class and get her rating up to make some of these races and we thought we would get away with a 1000m and it just didn’t pan out, whether it was running down the hill or whatever happened to her.
“Certainly that run brought her on and she is on the right path.”
Bred by Curraghmore’s Gordon Cunningham, Tofane is out of Galileo mare Baggy Green, a three-quarter-sister to Group One winner Youngstar (High Chaparral).
“We would like to think she is good enough to run in the mare’s mile on Derby Day if we could get there,” Moroney said. “I think being an Ocean Park out of Galileo mare it is a pretty stout family.
“It is a good staying family and she is showing real speed.” -NZ Racing Desk