Written by Dane Squance for breednet
In sensational form of late, Tom Dabernig’s Bivouac mare Cavalry Girl added the $300,000 G2 MRC Henley Homes Sprint (1000m) to her impressive record of eight career victories with an all the way win at Caulfield on Saturday.
Coming off a narrow second in the G1 MVRC Moir Stakes (1000m) behind My Gladiola, the 4yo mare had put together three consecutive wins prior to that and jumped away the favourite on Saturday.
Jockey Craig Williams took the speedy mare straight to the front, jumping away swiftly from the gates to cross those inside her from barrier five.
Image Courtesy of Racing Photos
With second favourite Bev’s Nine keeping her company, the pair cornered for home together, but Williams pressed the button and the daughter of Bivouac showed an impressive turn of foot to kick clear.
While Don’t Hope Do made so late ground, Cavalry held a one and a quarter length winning margin from the Simon Zahra trained So You Think gelding.
Bev’s Nine held on for third, ahead of the Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman trained G1 Oakleigh Plate and G1 Newmarket Handicap placed Gallant Son.
With eight wins and five placed efforts from 19 starts, the victory of the Tom Dabernig trained mare took her earnings to $837,995 and with plenty of options during the remainder of the carnival, it would not surprise to see her add to that.
Building a strong association with jockey Craig Williams, trainer Tom Dabernig further highlighted their relationship.
“Like Craig does with a lot of horses he’s just really clicked with her and he’s helped us along the way with his feedback and where to go with her next and what to do,” said Dabernig.
“Even so much so that he got his own set of Prime Thoroughbred silks made, which he’s wearing today, I said if she doesn’t win I’m very superstitious and they won’t be the lucky ones so anyway he goes that extra yard and it’s certainly appreciated.”
“I just said pre-race, it’s been a bit of a long six weeks because she’s naturally such an athletic, talented filly.”
“It’s been sort of trying to maintain that freshness. So there’s been plenty of work at the beach and we took her to Murtoa for a little jump out. Will Gordon actually rode her and he got off and he said, “I’m not used to riding these fast horses like this.”
“I think it nearly left him behind when it jumped out of the gate. But she’s done a great job and we’re very proud of her and hopefully we can keep extending that through to Melbourne Cup Week now.”
As for where she may head next, Dabernig felt Cup week may be where we see her next.
“There’s a couple of straight races, there’s one on Melbourne Cup Day and whether we consider the 1100 now, although she is a 1000m specialist, so we’ll try and get her there and then concentrate on the autumn I think.”
Having ridden the mare in her last few starts, Craig Williams was effusive in his praise.
“She’s a pleasure to ride,” said Williams. “Tom Dabernig, all the staff around him just know her so well.”
“Prime Thoroughbreds supports Tom Dabernig, they purchased her and I rode her as a three-year-old and she wasn’t quite strong enough, just with the care, guidance and education, building her up, now she’s awesome, just got beaten in a group one last start, Tom spoke to me during the week and said ‘have you seen her jump out during the week’ and I said no I haven’t done the form yet, but once I watched it with Will Gordon in the saddle I thought oh geez, she’s impenetrable at the moment, she’s a force of nature and very, very fast.
“She always makes her own luck and she’s quite versatile how we ride her which we found out this preparation, she was a one trick pony and now she’s just so confident and comfortable to ride, I can only do what I can do as a rider, Tom Dabernig and his team puts all the work into her, educates her and then of course her tenacity and her ability, it’s a fantastic combination and I really enjoy riding her.”
Purchased for $110,000 by Joe O’Neill’s Prime Thoroughbreds Pty Ltd from the Vinery Stud draft at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, the Patrick Hodgens and Bill Piper bred Cavalry Girl is the first foal of Islands, a winning half-sister by I Am Invincible to G2 winner and Magic Millions 2YO Classic winner Military Rose, the granddam of last season’s G1-winning juvenile Campione D’Italia.
The second foal of Islands is the 3yo The Autumn Sun filly Pacifico in the stable of Bjorn Baker, while the third foal of the mare is the unraced Russian Revolution filly My Island Girl.
After missing to G1 Golden Slipper winner Shinzo, the mare was covered by Extreme Choice’s Slipper winning son Stay Inside with a filly being foaled a little over a month ago.