The feature race at tomorrow's harness racing meeting at Ascot Park is the $40,000 Northern Southern Cup and Southlander Archie Affleck is hoping his pride and joy Mossdale Conner can break his duck for the season and win one for the locals.
With the great stakemoney on offer tomorrow, the leading Canterbury stables have come south in their droves and on paper thay look to have a strangle hold on most of the better races.
Although trained in Canterbury by Greg and Nina Hope, Mossdale Conner was bred and is owned in Southland and locals would love nothing more than to see him chalk a win up for Southland tomorrow.
Even though he hasn't won a race this season in 13 starts, he has recorded 3 seconds and four thirds and all those placings were at the highest level as his stake earnings of $180,855 would testify to.
Due to his lack of a win this season, Mossdale Conner has actually dropped back one grade from C7 to C6 which means even though he is the only horse in the field who has run on the Grand Circuit all season, he is actually going to receive a 10 metre start tomorrow from both Titan Banner and Quick As A Trick.
All that points to Mossdale Conner looking a class above them from his 20 metre handicap and driver Ricky May was confident of a big run when spoken to earlier in the week.
" He has gone super all year in the big races like the New Zealand Cup, NZ FFA, Auckland Cup and the Victoria Cup to mention just a few and does look a class above most here."
" Greg is very happy with him so he has to be hard to beat on Saturday," Ricky said.
Trainer Greg Hope won't be at Ascot Park tomorrow as he has Quite A Moment lining up in the Great Southern Star at Tabcorp Park Melton but is very confident that Mossdale Conner is close to his peak for tomorrow's race.
" He has come back from Australia in great condition and his recent trial at Rangiora was very good."
" His work since has been right up there with his best and I think he will be awfully hard to beat back with horses of his own grade on Saturday," Greg said.
Mossdale Conner may not have won a race all season but it would be fitting if the Southland owned gelding could break his duck in the Northern Southland Cup on Saturday.
Harnesslink Media