Stakes Girls Shine Early At Randwick

Well related gallopers Miss Shamardal and Gybe kicked away today’s public holiday Monday meeting at Randwick with impressive wins in the opening two events.

Miss Shamardal, a member of the Marc Conners stable, was the first winner of the day – thrashing her rivals in the Bronte Handicap (1800m).

A daughter of leading international sire Shamardal, Miss Shamardal is already a valuable breeding prospect, having earned black type with a third placing in the Reginald Allen Handicap.

Today under the urgings of Hong Kong bound jockey Tim Clark she raced clear of her rivals in the straight to beat Slick Lady by three lengths – Surge Draw was a breath back in third place.

The four-year-old mare has earned her connections over $122,000 thanks to her three wins and seven minor placings.

She has turned out a great buy for her trainer Marc Conners – paying $50,000 for her from the Vinery Stud draft at the 2008 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.

Miss Shamardal is one of three winners produced by the regally related Woodman mare Heavenly Night – a two time winner in the United States.

Heavenly Night is a three quartersister to Heart of Oak and half sister to Spinjive and Western Hour.

She in turn is from a Spend a Buck daughter of champion mare and one of the best producing mares the world has seen, Fanfreluche.

Group One winners in the family outside Fanfreluche include Flying Spur, Encosta de Lago, Medici, Holy Roman Emperor, Medaille d’Or, L’Enjoleur and La Voyageuse.

Meanwhile, stakes winning filly Gybe bounced back to her best in the second event at Randwick when she beat her older rivals in the Paddington Handicap (1300m).

Sent out the $3 favourite with bookmakers, Gybe got home to beat third favourite Isola by a long neck, while Paramount Pete was another neck back in third place.

Gybe is raced by a group headed by the Crabtree family’s Dorrington Farm and is trained at the track by Anthony Cummings.

Cummings purchased the filly for $100,000 from the draft of Oakwood Farm at the 2009 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.

On debut she guaranteed her future as a broodmare of note when she won the listed Gimcrack Stakes.

She is now the winner of two races and is three time placed from just eight runs and her earnings have shot past $126,000.

A three-year-old daughter of Fastnet Rock, Gybe is a half sister to this season’s champion New Zealand juvenile Anabandana.

Her dam, the unraced Nureyev mare Great Notice, is a full sister to stakes winner European Rose and the stakes placegetter Nureyev’s Girl – the latter being the dam of gun New Zealand three-year-old King’s Rose.

Great Notice is also a half sister to the stakes winners Roanoke and Hessonite and another full sister Lakabi is the dam of international stakes winners Soneva and Coronado Rose.

Another half sister to Gybe, by last season’s champion freshman sire Stratum, topped the recent Magic Millions National Weanling Sale when purchased by New Zealand interests for $220,000.