By BARRY STREET
Top trainer Paul O'Sullivan well remembers advice he was given by the much-respected, now retired Takanini trainer Ray Verner.
It was: Your winner may only be as good as your opposition is bad!
O'Sullivan had cause to recall that yesterday when assessing the chance of his in-form mare For The Roses in tomorow's main race at Ellerslie.
His contention is that while Four The Roses is unbeaten in her last three starts she may not have beaten quality opposition at graduation-open level.
Now she faces genuine open-class opposition, including group race winners, in the $14,000 Lion Red Handicap.
"She has come a long way in a short time," O'Sullivan said. "Because of that it is hard to get a line on her or to compare her with seasoned campaigners like Volkaire and Last Flight.
"On the other hand, she has looked pretty good coming through the grades, especially last time when she carried 59kg at Tauranga and bolted in by five and a quarter lengths.
"One thing in her favour is that she drops a lot in weight [to 53.2kg]. She also has an ideal draw [No 2]."
Mark Hills will be aboard For The Roses and others of the O'Sullivan team at Ellerslie.
Another good chance could be Tri Sonic, who was not suited by the ground at the Auckland carnival.
The odds against a Tri Sonic-For The Roses TAB double at Ellerslie seem to depend mainly on Tri Sonic's overcoming topweight of 58kg against the superbly-bred mare Blanchard (Kaapstad-Field Nymph).
Blanchard has gone from strength to strength with seconds to Ismailia at Te Rapa and to Shapaz at Ellerslie and a handsome last-start win over 2100m at Ellerslie.
Michael Walker was aboard Blanchard twice at the Auckland Cup carnival, but the mount this time has gone to Hills, who stands to earn more at Ellerslie than he might have at Trentham.
Racing: Big test For The Roses
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