In-form gelding Regal Azmon defies Arran Bay again to win Group 3 Cummings Stakes at Morphettville
Last in a field of 12, Regal Azmon ($15 Sportsbet) circled his rivals to explode down the straight, reeling in Arran Bay and Fine Future as trainer Phillip Stokes and jockey Lachlan Neindorf combined for another stakes win.
• PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
The Magnus gelding narrowly defeated Arran Bay last start in Open Handicap, assisted by an 8.5kg weight advantage, and with only 0.5kg separating them on Saturday, many, including Stokes, expected Arran Bay ($4.40) to turn the tables.
'I thought the same, especially how close they were last time,' Stokes said.
'He's a winner this horse and Arran Bay was game in defeat and I'm very happy to take the quinella again.
'A big thanks to Mark and the Regal mob, and the team here, they've done a really good job.'
Stokes has some thinking to do, with a possible Queensland tilt on the radar for the in-form seven-year-old.
'I'll have to have a think about that. We'll see what the ratings do, but we may have to think about Brisbane,' he said.
'Arran Bay, he's hard to place. He'll probably have a break and look to the spring. He's knocking on the door to win again.'
• What the jockeys said: 2025 The Goodwood
Wine Barron snapped a two-year winless streak in Saturday's opening race, which included an uncommon gear change.
Jamie Melham piloted a luckless Wine Barron to fifth on Derby Day, and with Jamie unavailable on Saturday, husband, Ben Melham, hopped aboard.
Ben Melham steered the Michael Hickmott-trained gelding to a commanding win.
Steel Trap produced a tough win in the Group 3 David Coles AM Stakes, the filly had a beautiful rails run under Jamie Melham, and scooted through underneath race leader Brave Design to grind out a maiden stakes win.
The two-year-old, trained by Dan Clarken & Oopy MacGillivray has a bright future, and was a $30,000 purchase at the 2024 Adelaide Yearling Sale.
The Melham show rolled into race four, with Ben bringing up an early double as Private Legacy saluted in the Centaurea Stakes.
It was a first stakes win for the Gregory Hickman-trained mare, who finished a narrow second in last year's Group 1 Australasian Oaks.
Litzdeel, who is a half-sister to Melbourne Cup winner Vow And Declare, won the Group 3 SA Fillies Classic for Victorian trainer Danny O'Brien.
The filly showed heart to stave off Chase Your Dreams and Cavity Bay in the final stages under the riding of Zac Spain.
Exciting mare Cleo Cat was an impressive winner of the Proud Miss Stakes, the four-year-old, who has won a remarkable seven wins from eight races for Tom Dabernig, cruised to a comfortable win under jockey Jordan Childs.
The Melhams shared riding honours on Goodwood day's nine-race card, both scoring a double, although Jamie Melham holds bragging rights, winning Saturday's major race.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
Nowhere to hide: Australia exposed by Smith retirement
It's no coincidence that Australia's hiding by South Africa in Cairns was their first ODI since the retirement of Steve Smith. In conditions that were momentarily tricky against the wily left-arm spin of Keshav Maharaj, Australia showed absolutely no ability to adapt to a newish ball spinning off a tacky surface, when they needed only to get through four or so overs for the drop and bite to diminish. That adaptability and thought were hallmarks of Smith's ODI career, finding ways to work with the ebb and flow of a 50-over game to make the runs required. Last time Australia played games up in Cairns, a 3-0 thumping of New Zealand in 2022, Smith was a star on a series of similarly testy surfaces, scoring his runs at a relatively sedate pace but playing the situation with mastery. But without him this time, after Smith elected to hang up his one-day kit and go play in the Hundred in England instead, the batting line-up looked dispiritingly gullible when pitted against Maharaj. He spun a web as thick as that conjured up by Shane Warne against South Africa in a famous World Cup semi-final at Edgbaston in 1999. Marnus Labuschagne, ostensibly there to take Smith's role, misread the length and was beaten by turn to be lbw, the 14th occasion on which a left-arm spinner had got him in an ODI. Cameron Green was similarly outfoxed to lose his off stump, and Josh Inglis – a noted player of spin – was nowhere to a quicker delivery that skidded through. Alex Carey's first-ball sweep was misjudged, and Aaron Hardie contrived for a near action replay of Green's dismissal. Maharaj's spell of destruction reduced the Australians to 6-89, having been 0-60 just nine overs before. That captain Mitchell Marsh and number eight Ben Dwarshuis were then able to play Maharaj with few dramas, in a game-prolonging stand of 71, only enhanced the sense of worry about what had just transpired.
The Australian
2 hours ago
- The Australian
Wallabies v Springboks 2025: Australia v South Africa, second Test, ten changes, team news, Cape Town, comeback
South Africa have made 10 changes to their starting team for their second Rugby Championship match against Australia at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday. Head coach Rassie Erasmus announced the new-look team on Tuesday and said the Springboks were determined to 'get things right' after their shock 38-22 defeat against the same opponents in Johannesburg last weekend. Four of the changes were because of injuries to captain Siya Kolisi as well as wings Kurt-Lee Arendse and Edwill van der Merwe and flank Pieter-Steph du Toit. Watch the biggest Aussie sports & the best from overseas LIVE on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1. Centre Jesse Kriel, one of five survivors from the Johannesburg defeat, will captain the team for the second time in his career. Prop Ox Nche, who also played last Saturday, will be vice-captain for the first time. 'We lost four players to injury, which obviously had an impact on a few of our selections but we also know where we went wrong against Australia last week,' said Erasmus. The Springboks opted for experience with Willie le Roux at full-back and Handre Pollard at fly-half, while Damian de Allende has recovered from injury and will reunite with Kriel in one of South Africa's most successful centre pairings. Le Roux, Pollard and De Allende have a total of 271 caps between them. There is also a return to a 6-2 forwards-backs split on the bench with Erasmus able to call on a powerful back-up tight five which includes lock Eben Etzebeth, South Africa's most-capped player. Erasmus said he was expecting another physical battle against the Wallabies, who recovered from being 22-0 down after 20 minutes to secure a six-tries-to-three victory last week. 'We are still hurting from that result and the coaches and players are extremely disappointed with the way we played last week,' said Erasmus. 'We know we didn't play according to our standards in the second half and we must rectify that.'
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Sydney FC forced to plan for potential exit of Brazilian star Douglas Costa
Sydney FC has started planning for life without Douglas Costa, with fears growing that the former Juventus and Bayern Munich star won't return for the upcoming A-League season. Costa remains in his home country of Brazil for personal reasons, and while Sydney officials are remaining patient with the 34-year-old winger, they need the issue resolved so they have time to find a replacement, if needed, before the transfer window closes next month. While the Sky Blues remain hopeful Costa returns, the club's other Brazilian import, midfielder Leo Sena, is set to be cut loose by the club. Sydney's head of player management Alex Baumjohannn on Monday told club supporters at a fan forum that Sena was no longer part of the Sky Blues' plans despite having a season to run on his contract. Sky Blues coach Ufuk Talay on Wednesday said Sena, 29, was 'mentally and physically not in the place we want him to be'. 'Personal issues that he's had off the field has definitely hindered his physical side of the game, so it's disappointing in that sense because we still believe he's a quality player that definitely adds value to our team, but we'll see how things pan out in the next couple of weeks with him,' Talay said. 'He's still part of the group, he's still here with the team, but moving forward we'll see how that pans out.' As for Costa, Talay said the club had no choice but to be prepared for the potential non-return of its marquee man. 'We want Douglas back. He's dying to get back,' the Sydney mentor said. 'There's no definite timeline, but for us, at the same time, we're thinking ahead. If things don't go to plan, we don't need to be sitting on our hands. 'We're hoping that we can get him here as soon as possible, but in the background, there is some work being done, so if it doesn't plan out the way we want it to be, we'll have to move forward in another direction. 'We're very wary as a team and as a club that the transfer window is closing pretty soon, and we need to make sure that we're not left in the lurch without getting a player across the line.' Costa and former Manchester United star Juan Mata were the A-League's two prized recruits ahead of the 2024-2025 season. However, there's now a chance that neither will be part of the competition going forward, with Spanish veteran Mata yet to decide if he will re-sign with Western Sydney Wanderers, where he received little game time last season under coach Alen Stajcic. Mata, 37, has also been linked with a move to Central Coast; however, the Mariners have been reluctant to sign new players due to financial constraints. While the Gosford-based club last week announced the signing of former Socceroos goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne, it's understood the Mariners had to go through with the acquisition of the ex-Sky Blues gloveman after intervention from Professional Footballers Australia because the veteran custodian signed a contract with Central Coast for the new season in March.
