Tricolours hope things go to script for The Playwright
Given Gai Waterhouse’s theatrical background, it would be entirely fitting if The Playwright (Written By) were to deliver a maiden Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) success for the first lady of Australian racing.
Back in the 1970s Waterhouse appeared in a number of shows on the small screen, before embarking on an extraordinarily successful training career which has yielded wins in virtually all of Australia’s most coveted races – with the exception of the Cox Plate (Gr 1, 2040m) and the Blue Diamond.
Twelve months ago, subsequent Golden Slipper Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) heroine Lady Of Camelot (Written Tycoon) went within a nose of securing a first Blue Diamond for Waterhouse, whose famous father Tommy Smith won Victoria’s premier juvenile contest on three occasions.
This year Waterhouse and her training partner Adrian Bott have followed the Lady Of Camelot playbook with The Playwright, who cost a relatively modest $60,000 at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
The filly joined Lady Of Camelot on the Widden Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m) honour roll with a determined display at Rosehill under Regan Bayliss, who also rode The Playwright’s dam Sugarparma (Snitzel) to victory on debut back in 2015.
The Playwright jumped from barrier three when she led all the way in the Widden, so connections would have been very pleased when she was assigned the same gate for Saturday’s race at Caulfield on Tuesday morning.
Her sire Written By (Written Tycoon) won the Blue Diamond for his then-trainer Grahame Begg back in 2018, so if Tricolours racing and syndications director James Moss was on the look-out for further omens as he goes in search of a first Group 1 win, he won’t have to look too far.
The Playwright will be Tricolours’ first runner in a Blue Diamond, so there is plenty at stake for Moss on Saturday – not least as his wife Danielle manages an all-female syndicate which also includes his mother Susan.
The Playwright has traversed the eastern seaboard in collecting more than $400,000 in prize-money, and with a further $2 million on the line on the weekend a top-two finish would see her become an instant millionairess.
However, to Moss the prestige of winning such an historic race as the Blue Diamond – and the potentially seismic impact it would have on the business – is of far greater value than mere dollars and cents.
“We’ve had a lot of stakes success and a couple of Group 1 placings, but haven’t managed to win a big one yet so hopefully that can change on Saturday,” he told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“It’s an achievement just to have a runner in the race, but to win it would be massive for us and to get a first Blue Diamond for Gai would be extra special. So far everything has gone right, the filly worked beautifully at Caulfield on Tuesday morning then we drew a good gate, so hopefully our luck can continue in the big race.
“She can absorb plenty of pressure up front, which she’ll need to in a $2 million sprint race. She was taken on early in the Widden Stakes, but she’s got a high cruising speed so she’s able to peel off some good sectionals and she’s also shown that she can run out a strong 1200 metres. So in what looks a very open edition of the race, we’re in with a live chance.”
The Playwright’s two previous starts over Saturday’s distance were both full of merit, as she finished third in the BJ McLachlan Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) behind Icarian Dream (Blue Point) – one of three Blue Diamond runners for Ciaron Maher – before running a big race when setting the pace in the Magic Millions 2YO Classic (RL, 1200m), eventually finishing fourth.
Those performances came in Queensland and the bombproof filly again racked up the kilometres when she made her way to Melbourne from her Rosehill base in preparation for Saturday’s assignment, which despite holding a Golden Slipper nomination may bring the curtain down on a prosperous prep.
“Gai and Adrian have left no stone unturned in getting her to the race,” said Moss.
“She’s been down at their Flemington stables for a couple of weeks now to acclimatise, and from all reports she has settled in really well. She’s used to the travel by now, she ran really well at her two starts in Queensland and she just seems to thrive on racing.
“She’s a very tough filly, we’ve taken it race by race this prep but at the moment there hasn’t been any sign that she’s come to the end of it. She bounced through the Magic Millions so the Widden was an obvious target, then when she got the job done there the Blue Diamond became the logical next step.
“The most amazing thing with her is that every time she races, she seems to come through the run even better than when she went into it. She loves being in the stable environment, and she’s been so easy for the team to deal with since the first day she arrived. Her runs have been fairly spaced out and each time she has travelled, we have given her plenty of time to settle in and get used to her new surroundings. It’s worked in the past so fingers crossed she’s ready to run another big race.”
A first Blue Diamond success would not only be big business for Moss but also for Anthony Thompson’s Widden Stud, as they look to get their resident stallion Written By into the big league alongside his sire Written Tycoon (Iglesia).
Moss is certainly a firm believer in Widden’s third season sire, with four of Written By’s progeny – including stakes winner The Novelist – on Tricolours’ books and a further two recently added to their roster at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale.
In partnership with Connolly Bloodstock, Tricolours acquired a pair of Written By fillies which will both join the Waterhouse-Bott operation, the first a $45,000 purchase from the Newhaven Park draft and the second sourced for $80,000 from Widden Stud’s draft.
Given the dam of the Newhaven filly is the Redoute’s Choice (Danehill) mare Fiction, connections will be spoilt for choice when it comes to naming her and Moss is confident that she will be just as easy to syndicate – particularly if things go to script for The Playwright on Saturday.
“I’m a huge Written By fan,” said Moss.
“The Playwright and The Novelist have both been amazing buys for us, and The Playwright’s full-brother [Manuscript] has also won two races so Written By is doing a great job for us. We’re also excited by another of his fillies called Enchanted By, who ran third on debut behind Icarian Dream and recently finished ahead of Wodeton in a trial.
“After all the success we’ve had with him, it made sense for us to buy a couple more Written By fillies at the Inglis Classic Sale last week. Like The Playwright they were both reasonably priced, which is the mandate we try to follow for our business.
“It’s not easy sourcing quality yearlings at affordable prices, but if you’re prepared to put in the work and do your research, it can be done. The two fillies have just been registered so will be on sale by the end of the week, and hopefully my phone will be ringing with interested parties if The Playwright runs well at Caulfield on Saturday.”
Bott was at Caulfield on Tuesday morning to oversee The Playwright’s track gallop under Craig Williams and was delighted with her work, labelling the filly “a consummate professional”.
“She’s always been very honest and durable and does everything we ask of her,” he said.
“She’s been up a long time now so she’s rock hard fit, but we just wanted to give her a good look at Caulfield so hopefully that ticked the final box ahead of Saturday. She keeps improving and she handles her racing really well, so she’s quite seasoned and well-conditioned for a two-year-old.
“We got some good feedback from Craig who did us a favour by riding her this morning, so we’ll take that on board and hopefully use it to our advantage on Saturday. There are plenty of things in her favour and we used the same formula as Lady Of Camelot last year, she may not have the same natural brilliance as her but she is a consummate professional.
“It looks a fairly even Blue Diamond this year, there are no real standouts so she definitely deserves her place in the race and hopefully she can capitalise on the very good form she’s been showing. Every time we’ve raised the bar with her she’s met it, so although it’s by far her biggest test to date I’m sure she won’t let anyone down.”