By Michael Guerin
Tomorrow night is the night of reckoning for some of New Zealand's leading pacers.
The final night of the Auckland Cup meeting has drawn the strongest programme assembled at Alexandra Park for several years but for a couple of fallen stars it could be little more than a stumbling block.
The serious money not only goes up for grabs tomorrow night but also in Melbourne in the following three weeks.
The problem facing many Kiwi trainers is justifying a trip to the Moonee Valley summer carnival.
While the Kiwi trotters will be there in force and Courage Under Fire will go over and scoop the Victoria Derby, the open class pacing assault could be decimated by the presence of Christian Cullen.
Already Mark Purdon has indicated he won't be taking any pacers to Melbourne, with Brabham and Bogan Fella staying home and Courage Under Fire having scared off Stevies and Smart Holmes as Derby chances.
And now big brother Barry faces the same queries.
Holmes D G is a certain Victoria and Hunter Cup contender even after suffering three defeats in a row for the first time in his career.
He lost nothing to Christian Cullen when second in the New Zealand Free-For-All in November and then standing start manners cost him any chance in his two recent Alexandra Park outings.
But he showed enough courage when challenging hard for the last lap of the Auckland Cup and Purdon says he is ready to show his best in Melbourne.
"He has come through the Auckland Cup very well even though he had a hard run," said Purdon.
"The Victoria Cup is an ideal race for him and then we will look at the Hunter Cup where we should get a decent head start from Christian Cullen."
But whether Holmes D G has any stable travelling companions is another matter.
Purdon has a host of open class pacers he could take to Australia but he sees no point unless they will be competitive - which is where tomorrow night's two Alexandra Park Free-For-Alls come in.
If Franco Hat Trick, Surprise Package, Anvil Vance or even Masterclass were to show their best tomorrow night they could be a plane to Melbourne.
Franco Hat Trick has proven himself in Australia so many times he is still a chance to for the Victoria Cup, while Masterclass is nominated for that race too because he has Australian owners.
Surprise Package is getting fit enough that Purdon will consider the Hunter Cup, a race he won two season ago, if he shows his best tomorrow night.
"The same applies for Anvil Vance. He is a better horse than he has been showing and could still make the Hunter Cup with a win tomorrow night."
Among the others in tomorrow night's main Free-For-All, Happy Asset will definitely head to Melbourne where he went two superb races last season.
But plans for Sam Malone, who has won at Moonee Valley before, are up in the air.
"He got pushed back to last in the Cup and never really had a chance," said co-trainer Pam Turner.
"We would like to take him to Melbourne if he went good enough this week but it is also a risk against Christian Cullen, especially with the Interdoms just two months away.
Two open class stars who won't be heading to Melbourne regardless of tomorrow night's results are Franco Enforce and There's A Franco.
The New Zealand Cup placegetters are already back in Christchurch after disappointing Auckland Cup runs.
Franco Enforce will head to the spelling paddock while his stable-mate will get ready for the rich mares races at Addington.
"She didn't do much in the Cup and I am hoping it was because she doesn't show her best form right-handed," said trainer John Hay.
"She has worked a lot better left-handed and I think she can bounce back in the races down home."
Helping There's A Franco's cause will be Kate's First's almost certain departure for Melbourne after tomorrow night, with the iron maiden of harness racing being set for the Hunter Cup.
Horse Racing: Decision time for beaten Cup runners
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