Choice to chase better-class autumn events

By Mark Ryan

MELBOURNE, Dec 15 AAP - Greg Eurell is hoping there are better races for honest galloper Coldens Choice in the autumn after he has his swansong for the current preparation at Flemington.

The Seul Amour four-year-old will be having his eighth run for the campaign in Saturday's Comic Court Hcp (2000m).

The gelding, whose career highlight is a second to subsequent Ballarat Cup winner Domesky in the Group Two Alister Clark Stakes (2040m) at Moonee Valley in March, won a Showcase 0-89 Hcp (1600m) at Bendigo when second-up in September.

He was eighth in both the Tokyo City Cup (1800m) at Morphettville and the Cranbourne Cup (2025m) and seventh in the Terang Cup (2150m) before dropping back to 1600m and running third at Moonee Valley and then winning over the same track and trip on December 2.

"He's won a couple of good races this time in and he steps up to 2000 metres again," Eurell said.

"He put in a couple of average runs and we found out that he was sucking his tongue back so we applied the tongue tie and dropped him back to the mile and he was a little bit unlucky that night at the Valley.

"Then he certainly made up for it last start.

"He's in very good shape and we'll see what he does on Saturday but he's certainly up to the mark.

"He'll go out after this run and we'll give him a bit of a let-up and, if he runs how we hope he will, we'll try and look for something a bit stronger in the autumn.

"We'll see if we can get him into a good race."

Chris Symons again takes the mount on Coldens Choice who drew barrier seven in the event reduced to nine runners after the scratching of Quick Bond.

Symons also rides stablemate Lakedro who drew the inside gate in a field of nine in the Skipton Hcp (1630m).

The Clangalang six-year-old resumed with an encouraging second to the in-form Freereturn over 1300m on a heavy track at Sandown late last month.

"I wasn't expecting too much first-up but he went a lot better than I thought," Eurell said. "He steps up to the mile which will help him enormously."

Lakedro hasn't won since taking out a 1600m event at Sandown 20 months ago.

But since then he has run second to Eraset in the 2010 Sale Cup (1600m), third to Aloha in the Listed Lord Stakes (1700m) at Caulfield last Boxing Day and runner-up twice in succession to Testascana at Caulfield in August.

Those efforts were over 1600m and in the 1700m Listed National Jockeys Celebration Day Stakes.

"Unfortunately he kept running into horses that little bit better that were dominant in that particular grade at the time," the Cox Plate-winning trainer said.

"But he's in good order and hopefully we can jump up one rung higher and win a race or two with him which would be nice."

Eurell said the Listed $100,000 Lord Stakes (1600m), to be run at Mornington on December 27, may be a possibility for Lakedro depending on how he performs on Saturday.