Coorong Cam braces for National test
Heats of the 2023 National Sprint Championship for South Australia will take centre stage on Thursday at Angle Park with two quality heats in store, with runners aiming to secure their place in the state final next week.
The headline act in the series is Victa Damian, who returns to South Australia after a three-week break following his second placing in a heat of the of The Maturity at The Meadows.
Heat two will see Victa Damian take on a couple of other in-form chasers, with Ravers Army and Dash Of Blue looking to stake their claims and take it up to the superstar.
Coorong Cam will go into first heat as one of the favourites with the brindle dog looking to continue his excellent extended run of recent form. In an incredible testament to the quality and consistency of Coorong Cam, he has missed a placing once since January and he has continued to run good times at multiple tracks.
Two weeks ago, Coorong Cam took out a Free For All at Angle Park with a gutsy 30.64 victory, before getting run down late in a small field last week in 30.75.
His trainer Tim Richards wasn’t too disappointed last week admitting that the track conditions had an impact on him.
“He was off a little bit last week, but the heavy track didn’t really suit. He had to work his guts out from eight,” Richards said.
“He went to John Katakasi on Friday and he pulled up with a sore toe, which was a bit ginger but we will work on it all week and hopefully get it right.”
Coorong Cam has drawn box three for his heat which breaks his recent run of wide draws. It appears to be an even race on paper with Victa Marli and Could Be King the other key chances in the event.
Richards will be hoping that Coorong Cam can make the most of the inside draw and show his reliable early pace with a top four run to secure a spot in the final next week.
“If we can get an inside box, which he’s got, he should feature pretty prominently. He should make the final I would think, if he wins then he wins, but if he doesn’t then he should make the final at least,” Richards said.
“Obviously there is no Victa Damian (in the heat), the other hard one is Victa Marli, but in saying that he has rolled them on his own anyway.
“I still think he has all the other Victa dogs measure, except for (Victa) Damian. He (Coorong Cam) has proved it from out wide, but if you give him an inside box where he doesn’t have to bust his ass to clear the pack. He’s a front runner, I think he will do a bit better than last week, he only got pipped at the post.”
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Miss Artemis has made a great start to her South Australian career and she will take another leap when she returns back to the city for a crack over the 595m trip, when she lines up in a mixed 4/5 grade event.
Following some terrific runs over the 530m distance, she stepped out over the 643m journey at Gawler last start and overcame significant trouble to win in 38.11. The strength of that run should have come as no surprise given her run home times over the shorter distance. That win was very pleasing for her trainer Ashlee Griffiths.
“I was happy with her run last start, she’s only young and still got heaps of improvement left,” Griffiths said.
The field on Thursday will certainly be a step up in class as opposed to what she has been racing against, as she will come up against a couple of top chasers in the form of Springvale Roxy and Air Outlaw but Griffiths will just be hoping that she can get a clear run to show what she can do.
“Her race is a little harder than she’s used to but I think she’s a chance, I am just hoping that she gets a clear run,” she said.
The lure of a Distance Championship run next week is on the mind of Griffiths, with Miss Artemis having previously won over the 720m distance at Wentworth Park. The decision as to whether she lines up in that final next week will be made after Thursday night.
“We aren’t sure where she’s going next, but will probably look at the Distance Championships depending on how she runs this week.” Griffiths said
Racing will start at 6:40pm Thursday night.
Best Bet: It’s Smudgy (Race 7, Number 7)
Value Bet: Zoe Rose (Race 11, Number 4)