Drop in grade suits South Of Houston

Trainers Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr went searching for answers following the disappointing first-up performance of South Of Houston during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.

The trainers could find nothing amiss with the mare, so they duly proceeded to Sandown on Wednesday where the mare blitzed her rivals in the Thoroughbred Club Australia Handicap (1200m).

Taking advantage of barrier one, South Of Houston ($3.80) under the guidance of Celine Gaudray, led throughout to score by 1-¼ lengths from Running By ($4.60) with Masterful ($7) two lengths away third.

It was the third time in three starts at Sandown that South Of Houston had drawn barrier one.

Kent Jnr admitted the stable had been a little ambitious running South Of Houston first-up in the Group 3 Furphy Sprint (1100m) at Flemington on November 4.

“I know it was a Group 3, but she did go below her best,” Kent Jnr said.

“We couldn’t work out why. We did all the tests, she seemed to be going great and Tahlee who rides her was delighted with her trackwork.

“She looks fantastic, and we applied a crossover noseband as she can be a little bit gassy.

“It was a very good ride by Celine. She showed good initiative and found the front, rated her well, didn’t go too slow, allowed her to breathe properly.

“She’s a progressive mare. She’s a big strong girl that has a good pedigree and it’s good to get her back on track.”

With a benchmark handicap rating of 72, Kent Jnr said South Of Houston, despite being equal topweight with 62kg in Wednesday’s race, was well suited against ‘the boys’ on Wednesday.

“I thought she was very well-placed today in a benchmark 64 with the mares’ allowance and also with the two-kilogram claim for Celine, she was well in really,” Kent Jnr said.

“It worked out, but I think we’ll just go through the grades at this stage and look for something maybe a little stronger later on.”