WHEN five-year-old galloper Tal Dean finally broke his maiden status at The TOTE Racing Centre at Mowbray last Sunday hardly a sound emerged from the stands.
The dull silence was most likely due to the surprise of the win, given Tal Dean had earned a reputation as a prolific placegetter that was most likely going to retire a maiden.
Tal Dean hit the front at the top of the straight but when the well-backed Adams Star emerged from the pack he looked set to run straight past the leader but under strong hands and heels riding from apprentice Jacques Luxe Tal Dean fought back to win well.
Tal Dean began his career with Deloraine trainer Terry Roles who believed the horse would knock up winning races based on his trackwork.
But multiple failures left him so disheartened that he offered to let the horse go and Wesley Vale trainer Glenn Stevenson took over the reins.
Stevenson admits the horse gave him the same impression that he left on Roles, as he explained after the gelding’s courageous win.
“He can gallop but you couldn’t say with any confidence that he’s one of those horses that will keep winning,” Stevenson said.
“He’s a bit too much of a thinker.”
“Several times when he’s looked like winning he’s stopped and today, when he looked like being over run he kept finding.”
“Maybe he has turned the corner but I won’t be counting on it,” he said.
Luxe claimed four kilograms and that was probably one of the contributing factors to Tal Dean’s win.