Angus Garrard is back on Captain Nemo at Albion Park on Thursday. PHOTO: Dan Costello.
This morning’s work like the Nemo of old but Thursday’s draw is more than cruel
By Barry Lichter • 14 May 2024
Captain Nemo’s work this morning showed he’s back to his old self but trainer Mark Dux knows the horse is right up against it from a punishing second row draw at Albion Park on Thursday.
Dux knew all was not well with Captain Nemo when he dropped out badly in his last run 17 days ago, finishing 47 metres from the winner.
Though he had a tough trip, having to work hard to find the death seat, Dux said Nemo would still normally have fought for all he was worth.
“It’s not like him to stop like that so I knew straight away something wasn’t right with him. Maybe the bug he’d had earlier in the month was still lingering.
“But he felt like the old Nemo when he worked today. He dashed up nicely, and wanted to do it, and that’s when you know he’s feeling all right.
“We only ran up the straight but he ran a quick last furlong in 13.1 and felt real good.”
Dux says he hasn’t drilled Nemo since his uncharacteristic flop but all seemed to be good with the horse again who had been racing much better than his formline suggested.
That doesn’t mean, however, that Nemo will be driven hard on Thursday when he will be reunited with top young gun Angus Garrard.
“We won’t be out there to make something happen. We’ll drive him cold and, if we have some luck, great.
“It’s not a super hard field, and I could see him finishing really strongly, but it will come down to luck. Art Jester, alongside us, is one of the main dangers, so we might get a reasonable run into the race.”
Captain Nemo races at 5.43pm NZ time at Albion Park on Thursday.
More news in Harness
Andre’s tip to Ray - try taking the blinds off head-scratcher Sammy Lincoln for Cambridge
Sammy’s back, trialling well, and the bookies are keeping him very safe on Friday night
Ignore the form line, Spirit Of God can answer punters’ prayers in Friday’s get-out stakes
Lincoln Wave poised for cheeky showing at Auckland on Friday night despite ratings
Our runners this week: How our trainer rates them
Ray’s comments
Friday night at Cambridge
Race 5: Sammy Lincoln
6.45pm
“You can’t hold that last race against him and he probably needed the run too as it was his first for a couple of months. Ability-wise he’s very good and on paper he should win. If he turns up, he’s the one to beat for sure.”
Race 6: Colonel Lincoln
7.20pm
“He got hooked up last week in that melee down the back straight and once you lose that momentum it’s hard, particularly when you’re get back in the field. He’ll go an honest race but he really needs to lose a point or two so he can get a better draw or an easier field.”
Race 9: Leo Lincoln
9.07pm
“He was closing on the winner last week, even though American Me had already switched off. There are no American Mes this week and you can guarantee he’ll be in it. He’ll go better the Cambridge way round - he handle the corners a lot better.”
Race 9: Ultimate Cullect
9.07pm
“I thought she went quite a good race last week and her driver Tony Cameron also said she went well and tried hard. She lacks a yard of speed - when they accelerate she flounders a bit - but she winds up and whacks away.”
