Although he enjoyed a wonderful day at Trentham on Saturday, trainer Allan Sharrock was left with a niggling feeling of what might have been had his promising mare Sinarahma jumped with the field in the Group 1 Thorndon Mile (1600m).
The 6-year-old Savabeel mare produced an amazing performance to get within a length of eventual winner Melody Belle in the feature after missing the start by 10 lengths.
Rider Danielle Johnson did a remarkable job to have Sinarahma within striking distance of the leaders at the 800m before unleashing a powerful finish in the slowest part of the track against the rail in the home straight to narrowly miss victory.
Sharrock later claimed a special win in the Group 3 Wellington Cup (3200m) with Waisake, but was left ruing the barrier bungle by Sinarahma in her first attempt at Group 1 level.
"I've never in 40 years seen a horse miss the start by that much and still be in the finish in a Group 1 race," he said. "It was an outstanding performance, probably a lifetime best for her.