THE last two-year-old classics of the season are the focal points on the nine-race harness card at Tattersall’s Park in Hobart on Sunday night.
The Evicus Stakes for fillies and the Dandy Patch Stakes for colts and geldings will see the best juveniles in the state contest these races that each carries a stake of $30,000.
The fillies final (race 4) looks a match between Cloudy Design and Play Apple Tree with Cloudy Design likely to start favourite courtesy of her inside (barrier one) front row draw.
Cloudy Design, prepared at Brighton by Christian Salter, won the Betfair Sweepstakes in March and she resumed with an effortless win in the Premier’s Blue Bonnet Plate over 1680m and at her most recent outing she scored an effortless win in an Evicus heat in Hobart two weeks ago.
The Nathan Ford-trained Play Apple Tree debuted with a fourth at New Norfolk in March but she resumed with as sensational win in Launceston coming from last with 700m to go to sustain a run and win was nothing short of remarkable.
At her only other run she faced the breeze but still proved too strong for her rivals in an Evicus heat a fortnight ago.
Connections of both fillies are confident of success and provided there are no incidents in the race the pair should fight out the finish.
The Dandy Patch final (race 5) is a more open affair with a number of runners considered a winning hope.
Punt Road Disco won the colts and geldings’ division of the Betfair Sweepstakes and his Dandy Parch heat win was good enough to warrant him starting favourite and he also has drawn ideally on gate four on the front row.
However the Bill Dornauf-trained Hesa Prospect has hit top form at the right time with his past two outings resulting in impressive wins.
He easily accounted for his rivals in his Dandy Patch heat two weeks ago and that followed a game second to Tony Macarony in the Steve Salter Black Stallion 2YO.
Prior to that run he broke his maiden status in a 2YO in Launceston on June 1.
Tony Macarony, Advanced Art and Ponderosas Gamble loom as genuine dangers