While most European imports take a preparation or two to acclimatise, Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott seem to have a knack for getting them to hit the ground running.
The Tulloch Lodge trainers have enjoyed early success with the likes of multiple Group 1 winner Sir Delius, who scored at his local debut in 2025; Eliyass, who likewise took out a stakes race at his first Australian start; and Just Fine, who captured the 2023 Kingston Town Stakes-Metropolitan double at his second and third Australian runs.
It’s Just Fine’s feat that their latest recruit, The Euphrates, will be striving to replicate in Saturday’s Metropolitan (2400m) at Randwick after capturing the first leg when he ran his rivals ragged in the Kingston Town Stakes (2000m).
Bott said the two years The Euphrates spent sidelined following his arrival in Australia meant his acclimatisation had been seamless, but he was also confident the Tulloch Lodge system of sourcing overseas talent was a major factor in identifying horses capable of slotting straight in.
“We are selective in what we try to target to bring out,” Bott said.
“That helps, the selection process and targeting the right horses to the style that will suit the training and racing. That’s a big benefit.”
A Listed winner and dual Group placegetter in Ireland, The Euphrates endured a series of minor hiccups when he first arrived, including a brief illness and subsequent muscle strain, that prevented him making his Australian debut until this spring.
But as with many Tulloch Lodge imports before him, he’s made an immediate impact, winning the Kingston Town Stakes at just his second local run.
That race showcased the horse’s high cruising speed, and it’s that ability to sustain a strong gallop that Bott expects will take The Euphrates a long way.
“He’s always been a very talented horse. He had good form coming over here, and he’s just had a bit of bad luck that we didn’t see him at the races for twelve months or so,” Bott said.
“But he’ll sustain that pace you saw the other day. He ran the same time over a mile, he’ll run it over 2000, he’ll run it over 2400 and hopefully sustain it over two miles as well.”
Downgraded from a Group 1 to Group 2 this year, the Metropolitan (2400m) has attracted a field of 13 headed by exciting young stayer and $2.20 favourite Aethelwulf, with The Euphrates a $4.40 second pick.
