INTEGRAND might chase a Christmas Ham at Gunnedah this Saturday for his recuperating trainer, rather than go to Cessnock on Tuesday.
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That was the news from ailing Muswellbrook trainer Jeff Englebrecht as he recovers from a hernia operation.
“Feels like someone has poked a pole through my guts and stuck it there,” Englebrecht said yesterday.
“I drove out to the stables this morning for the first time in a week tomorrow.”
Doctors have told him to rest up and not lift anything for at least two weeks.
He has no trouble complying.
On Monday he was quite happy to lie on his lounge and watch I’m In The Money and Hannah Martin lead all the way to win the Coolmore Home Of Champions Benchamark 60 (1400m) at Scone.
I’m In The Money was bred and is raced by Paul and Belinda Frampton who have just returned from England after selling two yearlings there at the October sale.
I’m In The Money was having her first start in blinkers after some indifferent efforts in recent races.
Hannah Martin’s claim brought the mare in well with 55kg and she cruised to the lead and refused to be run down, winning by two and a half lengths from the Tamworth-trained Jurassic Star, the recent Armidale Spring Cup winner.
“It was her first time in blinkers and she was down in weight, that helped,” he said.
“At her previous few runs she wasn’t hitting the line and Leanne (Henry) suggested after her Coona run we try blinkers.
“And she’s always carried big weights. Hannah rides quite well too, and is very capable.”
So everything combined to make it a good day.
Intergrand, he hopes, might do the same at Gunnedah.
“I’ll probably go there instead of Cessnock,” he said.
“At this stage we’ll go wherever he can get a run. He’s had two runs back from a short spell and Gunnedah might be more suitable to him over the 2050m.” Integrand has won at Gunnedah over the 2050m too.
That was October last year when the horse, with a legion of facebook fans, won the 2011 Manilla Cup a 2050m benchmark 48 handicap.
It was his second start at Riverside following on from a third in a 1300m maiden in 2010.
“Yeah Hari (Singh) won out there on him in a 2050m race last year,” Englebrecht said.
“Hopefully he (Integrand) can do it again.” When asked who would ride him at Gunnedah he responded with: “Now that’s a good question. I asked Patrick (Lo) if he wanted to ride him this morning but he said he had another ride. I’ll just see who has a ride and who hasn’t.”
While Gunnedah received 120 nominations for Saturday’s matinee TAB meeting Cessnock’s Wine and Country Race club received 111 nominations for Tuesday’s meeting.
Integrand was one of 19 nominations for Tuesday’s 1570m benchmark 50 handicap.
CESSNOCK B50 NOMS
* Benchmark ratings listed where available.
Courting Queen 43 (John Bannister), Demon Nurse 48 (Greg McFarlane), Dubai Palm 41 (Terry Evans), Half Price 37 (Pat Farrell), Heaps More 49 (Darren Smith), Heave Ho Heeby 41 (Jason Attard), Hezapearla 46 (Jeremy Sylvester), Hydrophilic 50 (Max Boland), Integrand 36 (Jeff Englebrecht), King Bing (Darren Smith), Knight Battle 50 (Amanda Langler), Miss Capone 51 (Jeremy Smith), Nineways 43 (Mark Vaughan), Orbitor 41 (Greg Preston), Park Heir 40 (Noel Boland), Sconandtink 47 (Michael Clout), Shdaad 45 (Jeremy Smith), Spartan Law (Bart Dening), Three Queens 45 (Todd Howlett).
