La Casona score dogged debut win

The Ciaron Maher and David Eustace stable will be in no rush with La Casona who displayed plenty of fight to score a debut win at Sandown.

A $400,000 yearling purchase by Snitzel, La Casona took out the 2024 Stud And Stable Staff Awards Plate (1300m) on Wednesday.

Well supported in betting to run the $2.70 second favourite with betting sites under Craig Williams, La Casona scored a long neck win from the $1.80 favourite Inez with Into You ($41) a further 2-½ lengths away third.

La Casona and Inez, who had finished runner-up at her first two starts, staged a two-horse war over the final 400m after being the first two to jump from the barriers.

Maher and Eustace assistant trainer Jack Turnbull said there was a lot to like about the debut win, although the stable was likely to resist the temptation of aiming too high, too soon.

“She held off a horse that had been in decent form, so it’s good to get a city win at her first time out as she was an expensive filly,” Turnbull said.

“I think she could get to Stakes grade, especially while she is three, and we’d like to give her that chance, I’d imagine.

“But I think we will go through the grades. She will be three-and-a-half weeks between runs in a (benchmark) 64 next, either back here or Moonee Valley.

“She still has a lot to learn. She did it from the front and was good, but she had that horse at her girth and was on the rail, which probably helped her.

“We’ll see what’s on the card, but thankfully we’ve got a win next to her name and we can look to bigger things.”

Williams had done his homework on La Casona and was expecting the filly to take a lot more riding to find the front.

He said those replays had shown the jockey La Casona was ‘not that fast’.

“But they tinkered with different gear to get her to develop, educate, and now you see that product and she was quite dominant in the end I felt today,” Williams said.

“At her first race start, she wins a city maiden.

“It’s great for her pedigree, and she’s got a lot of upside the way she fought late.”