Noondie joins Chairman's Sale

Noondie (Flying Spur), the dam of recent G1 Oakleigh Plate winner Booker (Written Tycoon), is the latest addition to the Inglis Chairman’s Sale in May.

Noondie will be offered at the sale in foal to Written Tycoon, with the resultant foal a full sibling to Booker, a winner of three stakes races, including the recent Caulfield sprinting feature,

Booker has also been stakes-placed on five other occasions and has won over $840,000 in prizemoney having been bought for $230,000 as a yearling.

Her as yet unraced full brother, Banquo, now a 2-year-old, sold for $600,000 at the 2018 Gold Coast Yearling Sales, while the yearling half-brother by Starspangledbanner sold for $80,000 at the recent Melbourne Premier Sale.

Noondie herself was a $50,000 buy at the 2010 Melbourne Premier Sale.

“Noondie is a stunning individual and she will appeal to the most discerning of broodmare buyers,” Inglis’ Victorian Bloodstock Manager Simon Vivian said.

“Noondie’s weanling colt by Capitalist is as good a foal as you could hope to see. She is back in foal to Written Tycoon, hence carrying a full relation to Booker and I’ve no doubt every major breeder would love to own such a commercial package.”

Noondie joins the likes of Aloisia, Srikandi, Norzita, Snitty Kitty and Now Now as headline entries in the sale, which will be staged at Riverside Stables on the evening of Friday May 3. Entries for the sale close at 5pm on Friday March 15.

Coolmore lures Boss back

Glen Boss will be chasing a hat-trick of wins in the G1 Coolmore Classic after accepting the ride on Jamaican Rain (Manhattan Rain).

Boss, who is riding in Singapore, was sounded out by Richard Laming after the Victorian trainer was struggling to find a rider for the lightly-raced 6-year-old at 52.5kg.

"I tried a few riders locally and a lot of them can't make the weight," Laming said.

"I know Glen is a big-race rider, he can make the weight, he thrives on the big races and he's ridden a lot of big race winners at Rosehill.

"He knows the track like the back of his hand so I rang him up, he said 'let me have a look at her' and then he rang me back and said I'd love to come and ride her'."

Boss, who is seventh on the Singapore jockeys' premiership, has won the Coolmore Classic twice on Typhoon Tracy in 2009 and Aloha two years later.

Slipper back-up on cards

Peter and Paul Snowden won't hesitate to back-up any of their G3 Pago Pago Stakes runners into the G1 Golden Slipper S. if one or more of them can earn a last-ditch qualification for the juvenile showpiece.

The training partners will saddle up a four 2-year-olds in Saturday's race in the hope at least one of them can join Anaheed (Fastnet Rock) and possibly Catch Me (I Am Invincible) in Saturday week's Slipper field.

"That's the beauty of it, especially the horses that have raced, they can cop the racing and they've proven that so it would be no challenge for them to back-up a week later," co-trainer Paul Snowden said.

The team's five runners include debutant Famous (Medaglia D’Oro {USA}), last-start Kensington winner Stronger (Not A Single Doubt) and Autocratic (Wandjina), who hasn't raced since he finished midfield in the G3 Breeders' Plate last spring.

But it is Magic Millions placegetter Hightail (Written Tycoon) and G2 Skyline Stakes runner up Cosmic Force (Deep Field) that Snowden rates most highly on exposed form.

"I would assume they're seeds one and two but it wouldn't shock me to see Autocratic or Famous running really well," he said.

Import in fine shape to resume

Plein Ciel (Ger) (Mamool (Ire}) will step out for his new stable in the Listed March S. at Flemington with the opportunity to chase a first black type victory.

A winner of six of his 12 starts with five placings, Plein Ciel was trained by Darren Weir for his first 10 Australian starts, which included five city wins in Melbourne.

The 6-year-old has since been transferred to trainer Anthony Freedman and hasn’t raced since finishing third in a Listed race over the same course and distance last spring.

"He's a lovely horse and he arrived in good order," Freedman's son and assistant Sam said.

"We've given him a couple of jump-outs. Most recently at Cranbourne he led them up and won the trial by a couple of lengths.”

First stakes win beckons

Apprentice Baylee Nothdurft can complete a successful week with the plum ride on favourite Mr Marbellouz (Love Conquers All) in the Listed TAB Goldmarket at the Gold Coast.

Nothdurft, who rode a double at Eagle Farm last week, won a heat of the National Apprentices' Challenge series at Ascot in Perth on Wednesday.

A win on Saturday would give the Toowoomba apprentice his first stakes winner and Mr Marbellouz is a warm favourite in the race which is one of the oldest on the Queensland racing calendar.

Nothdurft still has a 3kg claim, but Mr Marbellouz's trainer Kevin Kemp has full faith in him.

"He won on Mr Marbellouz last start and knows him well," Kemp said.

Sydney options for Rondinella

Cambridge trainer Roger James is pleased with the way Rondinella (NZ) (Ocean Park {NZ}) has come through her last-start placing in the G1 New Zealand S.

“There is every chance she is going to run in Australia next start, quite possibly in Sydney next weekend,” he said. “ She will hold a nomination for the Ranvet and the Epona S. on the same day.”

She is one of the most progressive gallopers in New Zealand and has won four of her 11 career starts, with a further four placings.

Medaglia D'Oro colt tops OBS final day

The final day of the OBS March Sale of Two-Year-Olds In Training saw a colt by Medaglia D'Oro (USA) top the session with a price of $900,000.

DJ Stable and Cash is King partnered to secure Hip 422 from Raul Reyes King Equine. The colt is out of the stakes-placed Tapit (USA) mare Rashnaa (USA). Overall, he was the third highest priced lot of the sale, after colts by Tapit and Pioneerof The Nile (USA) went for seven figures on Day 1.

Overall, average ($144,837) and median ($95,000) were down on last year but overall gross was up to $44.442m with 309 sales.

"I think there was activity at all levels,” said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. “We sold more horses than we sold last year, and while the average and median both dipped a little bit, with us selling about 50 more horses than we did last year, 30 of those horses were less than or equal to $50,000.”

“In 2018, we sold 87 horses for equal to or less than $50,000 and we sold 117 this year [at that level]. We were happy to see that–horses got sold at all levels. On the other end, we had two horses that brought over $800,000 and this year we had six, so there was growth on both ends. We felt really good about that.”

Jim Cassidy pondering return

Former champion jockey Jim Cassidy is considering making a comeback to the saddle.

Cassidy has been recovering in hospital with bleeding on the brain and bruising following a car crash. last weekend.

After talking with long-time supporter John Singleton, he has flagged a potential return to race riding.

"I was talking to Singo on Saturday and he said 'Pump when are you going to get the gear back on, the red gloves back on and get back out there'," Cassidy told RadioTAB.

"I'm going on 56 and my kids are settled and Jeff Lloyd's still punching them around riding plenty of winners in Queensland.

"Who knows, there might be a chance the Pump could throw them back on, but at this stage the golf course is winning."

"Where there's a will there's a way. Who knows, it (the comeback) could be in the next six months or in the next couple of weeks."