It’s Group 1 Memsie Stakes day at Caulfield on Saturday, though we will be heading to Rosehill for a fascinating Group III San Domenico Stakes, where a case can be made for all six acceptors.
Doubtland (Not a Single Doubt) and Peltzer (So You Think) put their unbeaten records on the line, Anders (Not a Single Doubt) will be lining up to make it four wins on the trot, the Group III Gimcrack Stakes heroine Every Rose (Choisir) will be looking to get her career back on track and the $1.7 million Exceed And Excel colt Osamu will be hoping to go one better than his second in the Group II Skyline Stakes.
The winner of the Skyline, the John Thompson-trained Mamaragan will be making his seasonal debut in the San Domenico and despite his 2.5kg penalty we will put our faith in him.
The son of Wandjina won the Skyline at his career debut then backed up three weeks later for a meritorious third behind the budding superstar Farnan and the Magic Millions 2yo classic heroine Away Game in the Group 1 Golden Slipper.
Mamaragan rounded out his juvenile season with a fighting third behind King’s Legacy and Prague on a heavy 8 in the Group 1 ATC Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) at Randwick.
There are many people that can boast they once owned Forbidden, who is now the dam of one of Australia’s most promising three-year-olds.
Forbidden first saw a sales ring when consigned to the 2006 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale where she was knocked down for $100,000 to the bid of John Shannon.
Trained by John Maloney, the daughter of General Nediym made seven winless starts and it was back off to the sales where Ron Stephens had enough pocket change to shell out $500 at the 2008 Inglis Great Southern Bloodstock Sale.
Stephens put Forbidden back into training. She did win five races for him although her final record of five wins and 13 placings from 45 starts with earnings $14,978 is a fair indication of the tracks she most frequented.
Still it proved a sound enough financial move for Stephens who sent her to the 2011 Inglis August Thoroughbred Sale where she was sold to Cherokee Stud for $4,000.
When Forbidden went through the sale ring once again at the 2017 Australian Broodmare and Weanling Sale her pedigree page had improved remarkably.
Her half-sister Dance With Her (Al Maher) had chalked up 12 wins and over $765,000 highlighted by wins in the Listed SAJC Centauria Stakes, Listed Pakenham Cup and Listed Warrnambool Cup while her half-brother Son Of Maher (Al Maher) had won the Listed Dunedin Guineas and was runner-up in the Group 1 WRC Levin Classic and would later win the Group II CJC Coupland Bakeries Mile.
In foal to an early cover by Snitzel’s Group 1 VRC Australian Guineas hero Wandjina, Forbidden caught the eye of Wilf Mula’s Aston Bloodstock who took her home for $65,000.
The resultant foal was of course Mamaragan who was consigned to the 2019 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling sale by Newgate Farm with John Thompson signing the ticket for $180,000.
Mula wisely retained a share as Mamaragan who is championing the cause of both his sire and dam.
Forbidden is a daughter of the well-performed West Australian mare Dance Hit (Tights) a 7-time winner including a pair of Listed events and was placed in the Group II Western Australian Oaks and Group III Strickland Stakes.
There is not a lot happening in the next two dams of Dance Hit but the great-granddam is very interesting.
She is the top-class kiwi mare Peg’s Pride a 5-time stakes winner in her homeland who did not show her true potential in Australia. She was one of four runners by the great Alcimedes in the 1973 Melbourne Cup. The best of the four that day was the wonderful Magnifique with Peg’s Pride trailing home in 16th. That was the day to be backing the locals.
The vastly underrated Gala Crest had three starters including the popular winner Gala Supreme for Ray Hutchins and Frank Reys, while Gala Red clocked in sixth and Cyril Beechey’s Turnbull Stakes and Mackinnon Stakes winner Australasia was a meritorious eighth.
As good as she was on the track, Peg’s Pride proved to be a miserable failure at stud with just two winners from her seven foals.
There was a good deal to recommend her on a pedigree being a daughter of the 1961 Queensland Oaks and AJC Princess Stakes winner Winnipeg II and a three-quarter sister to Philimedes the dam of the Group 1 Oakleigh Plate winner and very good sire Turf Ruler and the Perth Cup winner Philomel.
But all was not lost. One of the to winners for Peg’s Pride was the Randwick winner Regal Presence who is the granddam of the top-class mare Sound Action.
The daughter of Vettori won the Group I Australasian Oaks at three and the Group I Ranvet Stakes (2000m) at Rosehill defeating Ambulance and Makybe Diva. She finished third in Lonhro’s Group 1 CG Orr Stakes and split Lonhro and Mummify in the Group II St George Stakes.
She had the potential to keep the line thriving but sadly it was not to be. Plagued by chronic foot problems throughout her career, Sound Action succumb to a pedal-bone injury following emergency surgery. She had recently been sold to Sean Buckley for a reported $500,000. Which brought on an unsuccessful lawsuit against the mare’s previous owner.
