Racing: Wayward filly too good in Golden Slipper

SYDNEY - Brilliant but wayward filly Crystal Lily repaid her owner David Moodie many times over with a spectacular win in the Golden Slipper Stakes at Rosehill.

Moodie paid the A$150,000 late entry fee to put Crystal Lily in the field after she won the Sweet Embrace Stakes last month and her win netted him A$2 million.

"I always had the feeling she had the X-factor," Moodie said.

"I thought she was a certainty beaten in the Blue Diamond.

"This is the biggest moment of my racing life. I won the Caulfield Cup with Arctic Scent and that was special but this is No 1."

Sent out the second favourite at $6, Crystal Lily was in close contact with the leaders and dashed to the front inside the 200m.

It looked smooth sailing from there until she suddenly veered left with Brett Prebble struggling to control her, but she still had half a length on Decision Time ($26) who was on the inner part of the track.

More Strawberries ($12) was another length back third with a lot of big names behind, including $3.50 favourite Military Rose who finished 11th of the 15 runners.

The pressure told on fairytale filly Chance Bye and she weakened to finish ninth.

"She's a class above them," Prebble said. "She's going to be a super filly as a 3-year-old as she gets older and more mature and does things in a proper manner.

"What she did today, I couldn't even ride her out properly and she still won the Slipper - bless her heart she did."

The premiership leader in Hong Kong, Prebble made the rushed trip to ride Crystal Lily before flying back to resume his battle with Douglas Whyte.

A daughter of 2005 Golden Slipper winner Stratum, Crystal Lily is trained by Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra at Flemington and her waywardness showed her obvious dislike for the Sydney direction of racing.

"It's unbelievable, extraordinary," Ellerton said.

"I just wish she'd go straight.

"Everything else has gone right. We took her home in between the Sweet Embrace and today and she didn't miss a beat.

"I guess that's the key to the Slipper, there has to be nothing go wrong, you can't have any setbacks and she hasn't had any."

The owners of Decision Time also spent $150,000 wisely with the gelding earning $620,000 for second and bringing up a Slipper first of a late entry quinella.

Trained by four-time Slipper winner Clarry Conners, Decision Time earned his way by winning the Black Opal Stakes.

"Our horse had a lovely run but the other one was just too good," Conners said.

"Craig [Williams] thought he was going to run a nice fourth or fifth but he kept digging and digging."

More Strawberries gave Gai Waterhouse some consolation after the withdrawal of More Joyous from the Queen Of The Turf.

"She ran a phenomenal race," she said. "She's as tough as teak, the further she went the more she gave.

"She will probably go on to the Sires' Produce Stakes next week."

Crystal Lily's win had special meaning for Moodie who was denied victory in the 1996 Golden Slipper with Paint.

That Slipper was won by Merlene who caused much interference on the home turn but Paint was in his own trouble being bothered in front by Excel Pilot.

Merlene ran him down in the straight and Moodie has had to wait a long time to get another runner as good as Paint.

"That was one I thought we could have won but that's history now," he said.

Prebble was brought down to earth with a bang after he was suspended and fined $5000 for his winning ride.

He will miss three Hong Kong meetings giving Douglas Whyte the chance to make up the six-win gap.

Stewards told Prebble he should have stopped riding to make sure he was not hampering Hugh Bowman on Solar Charged as Crystal Lily crossed in front of the other filly.

Prebble said he had done his best.

"I'm not in control of her, she's in control of me," Prebble said.

"I know Hugh's there and I want her to go straight. I don't know she's going to do what she did.

"In three strides she's shifted almost three horses."

Chief steward Ray Murrihy acknowledged that Crystal Lily contributed to the incident but told Prebble he should have made more of an effort to uphold his duty of care.

- AAP