Australia: Local troops face tough assignment in Moruya Cup

Whisky‘n’diamonds and Hay Bale have thrived at Moruya Racecourse in Australia, the venue where their current trainers are based.

They are both multiple winners at the small coastal venue south of Sydney and were first and second in the minor Christmas Cup at 6 1/2 furlongs there on Dec. 20. While those performances were promising, Whisky’n’diamonds and Hay Bale face tougher rivals in Thursday’s Moruya Cup at about seven furlongs.

There is no reason why the accomplished local runners cannot record an upset in the Moruya Cup against runners such as Gunga Din and Peyton Place, who were prominent in early betting on Tuesday.

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Whisky’n’diamonds, who is trained by Greg Backhouse, has won 7 of 29 starts in his career and 6 of 12 races at Moruya. The recent win in the Christmas Cup was the second consecutive win for Whisky’n’diamonds at Moruya.

Hay Bale, trained by Natalie Jarvis, has won 6 of 43 starts in his career and 3 of 7 starts at Moruya. In the Christmas Cup, Hay Bale set the pace and was beaten about a neck. In August, Hay Bale won consecutive starts at Moruya in handicaps at six and seven furlongs while racing as a stalker.

Gunga Din won a seven-furlong handicap at Canberra Racecourse on Dec. 29, ending a four-race losing streak since a win in the Narrendera Cup at a mile at Narrendera Racecourse in July.

The Moruya Cup is a suitable drop in class for Golly I’m Lucky, who was a game second in a seven-furlong handicap at Kembla Grange in August, but was not as competitive against tougher fields at Kembla Grange, Rosehill Gardens, and Royal Randwick in November and December.

The Moruya Cup is the seventh race on an eight-race program that begins at 9:04 p.m. Eastern, or 6:04 p.m. Pacific, on Wednesday. Wagering and viewing is available through DRFBets.com.