Michael Young, the State’s leading trainer this season, is predicting that stable newcomer Bobby Waterhouse will follow in the footsteps of the much disparaged Our Thunder, who arrived in WA three months ago with a losing sequence of 66.
Bobby Waterhouse, a New Zealand-bred six-year-old with a similar reputation as Our Thunder, will make his debut in WA for Young when Emily Suvaljjko drives him from the prized No. 1 barrier in the $21,000 Lee Keddie Member Since 2007 Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Bobby Waterhouse boasts a losing sequence of 35 (with only five placings in that period) but is expected to be a hot tote favourite.
“We bought Bobby Waterhouse for $12,000 from the same stable in New South Wales that he purchased Our Thunder for $6000,” said Young.
Young is having the last laugh on his detractors, with six-year-old Our Thunder’s first six starts for him and the gelding’s other part-owners resulting in three wins, two seconds and one third placing for stakes of $23,458.
“Hopefully, Bobby Waterhouse will follow in the footsteps of Our Thunder,” said Young. “He is working good, and I think he will win. He has good gate speed and is a good frontrunner.”
Bobby Waterhouse won at three of his 33 starts in New Zealand, two of them on grass tracks at Motukarara (rating 2.9.1 over 200m) and at Methven (scoring by a nose and rating 2.6.6 over 2300m), with his other win being at a 2.0.1 rate in a 2050m mobile event at Timaru.
He then had 19 starts in Queensland for three wins and nine placings before racing 30 times in New South Wales without a victory and just one second and three third placings.
“His Queensland form was good, and he rated 1.54.8 when he led and won over 2100m at Albion Park in March last year,” said Young. “His form deteriorated in New South Wales, and the bonus of that is that he has dropped about 20 points which equates to about five wins (under the national ratings system) and we were able to buy him at the bottom of his level.”
Emily Suvaljko shares Young’s confidence, saying: “I drove Bobby Waterhouse this morning (Tuesday) when he worked well with Princess Katie.”
It is interesting to note that Bobby Waterhouse’s elder full-brother Tommy Waterhouse, who earned $112,798 from seven wins and 16 placings from 62 starts, had five starts in WA in December and November last year when trained by Gary Hall snr, and resulted in two placings.
By Ken Casellas