Racing: Ashford in royal Oz debut

MELBOURNE - Manawatu jockey Darryl Bradley says he just had to hold his breath and hope he could hold on when King Of Ashford raced to the lead at the top of the straight in Saturday's Coongy Handicap at Caulfield.

King Of Ashford, making his Australian debut, initially held at bay the run of Temple Hills in the run to the line, but couldn't stave off the late run of Maybe Better, who came from well back to win.

Despite the defeat, it was a big run by King Of Ashford and gave Otaki trainer Karen Zimmerman the confidence to talk of tackling the A$500,000 ($575,000) weight-for-age Mackinnon Stakes (2000m) at Flemington on November 4.

"We would have to consider the Mackinnon seriously now," a smiling Zimmerman said after the race.

Bradley was thrilled with the six-year-old gelding's effort.

He said he was forced into improving the horse's position earlier than he wanted because he would have otherwise ended up trapped on the rail.

"I was in a worse spot than I anticipated, and at the 600m the swoopers started to come, so I got out because I didn't want to get boxed in," he said.

"We've gone forward and at the turn he just cruised to the front, the leaders didn't seem to come at us.

"I just had to hold my breath and hope. We just didn't quite make it."

King Of Ashford, who started as a $21 chance with Melbourne bookmakers, caught many punters by surprise with his effort.

The run was all the more meritorious because he came from behind on a day which suited front-runners in the main.

The time, too, was a slick 2 mins 1.2 secs for the 2000m.

King Of Ashford's main target is the Sandown Classic on November 18, but the Mackinnon is an appealing prospect with the ranks of Australian middle-distance runners looking thin, especially as the top-liners will be aiming at the Cox Plate this Saturday.

* The former Lance O'Sullivan-trained mare Crepe De Chine was a winner at Caulfield on Saturday, taking out the A$70,000 The Age Plate (1100m), after showing brilliant speed at the start and holding out the late-comers.

She is now trained in Melbourne by Danny O'Brien.

- NZPA