The rise of gigantic stables has seen the pursuit of black-type become an Australian-wide operation, so it wasn’t unexpected to see Waller, Maher, and the Archibalds have Stakes runners in three states on Saturday, but there was another yard that joined the group.
The Goulburn operation of Matt Dale might not have the numbers compared to the biggest stables in country, however his start to 2025-26 season with 23 winners coming at a rate above 21 per cent and returning 127 per cent on investment is impressive.
Dale was sending runners to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in the search of Stakes wins on Saturday, but plans changed.
“To be talked about with those stables is something that doesn’t happen that often for a little country operation like us,” Dale said.
“Unfortunately, it won’t be three states for us because So You Pence drew wide in Brisbane. We will wait for another race with her.”
“She is going great, but a wide gate made it too hard for her. There’s a race in a fortnight up there, the How Now Stakes, which we won with Danny’s St Darci last year, that’s perfect for her as she is the same sort of horse.”
Dale’s other stakes runners are Front Page in the Starlight Stakes at Rosehill and last-start winner Boston Rocks in the Doveton Stakes at Caulfield. Like So You Pence, they came out of the Kosciuszko with a lot more to give.
Get Matt Welsh’s preview for Caulfield here.
“The Kosi was such a good form race. Tommy Berry got off Boston Rocks after it and said he should have run a place, so we knew he was going well,” Dale said.
“He was right, we saw that when he got the job done last time [in the Listed Caulfield Village Stakes].”
“We have had him for a while, and he definitely goes better on his Melbourne leg.”
“He has drawn a good gate down there again on Saturday, so he’s going to get a similar set-up to last time. He is in great shape heading down there.”
Dale returns evergreen sprinter Front Page to the Rosehill 1100m, where he has been twice placed in The Galaxy, which earns him top weight of 60kg on Saturday.
The massive impost allows his regular rider in the mornings, Nick Heywood, to take the ride as Front Page finds a dry, firm track, which is to his liking.
“Nick has done a lot of the work on him for the past couple of years and ridden him in jump-outs and trials, so it was a good opportunity to put him on,” Dale said. “He knows him so well.”
“He won’t have to carry a lot of dead weight with Nick and even though he is a nine-year-old, he is as sound as we have had him.”
“He appreciates the gap between runs and the last two times he has been to this trip he has run placings in a Group 1. That puts him right in this race.”
Dale will take Satin Stiletto to Saturday’s Highway and another last start winner Bravissima will also be on the truck to Rosehill.
