Coffs Harbour preview: Slice Of Heaven to showcase her quality

Slice Of Heaven has dealt Colt Prosser some highs and lows in her short and eventful career but today it should be a happy occasion for all concerned when she aims to take her trainer’s win tally to 199.

The daughter of Rubick, also the sire of Everest winner Yes Yes Yes, heads to Coffs Harbour on Thursday where she chases her third win at what will be her sixth start.

Slice Of Heaven has already banked four times her mere $10,000 purchase price at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale but it could have been so much more had bad luck not intervened.

The Form: Complete NSW Racing thoroughbred form, including video replays and all you need to know about every horse, jockey and trainer. Find a winner here!

Slice Of Heaven was moments away from a tilt at the $2m ATC Inglis Millennium (1200m) in February but became fractious in the barriers and was a late withdrawal.

“She had a couple of horses there beside her that were playing up and then she lost her cool and flipped over,’’ Prosser said.

“She was long odds that day but you dream of getting a horse to qualify for one of those races and you finally get one and it just went pear-shaped.

“I was mainly disappointed for her owners. It was a big day and there was a heap of them down there to enjoy it and just nothing went right.’’

It may not be a $2m race at Coffs, but Showcase money was a lure too good to ignore for Prosser and his bargain basement filly.

“I had her ready a month ago and she had a bad foot abscess so I just kept her idling waiting for the foot to come good and then I noticed this race about two or three weeks back and so I have aimed her towards it,’’ Prosser explained.

“I am grateful for the Showcase meetings because they are really handy and they do throw in those Country Only races which is helpful.’’

Thursday’s Urban Expresso Class 2 Country Only (1000m) is a far cry from some of the races that Slice Of Heaven has contested; notably the Inglis Challenge won by The Bopper.

Prosser has three runners at Coffs Harbour’s Showcase and Sawtell Cup meeting and only needs two of them to win to reach a milestone of 200 winners; three of which are TAB Highway winners.

There won’t be too many better bred horses at Coffs on Thursday than Prosser’s debutante Sea Of Qi whose third dam is European filly sprint sensation – Habibti.

“He is a horse that shows me straight away that he is going to want a trip. He is out of a Zabeel mare and had a couple of nice little trials over a 1000m but they were just way too short for him.’’

Prosser’s remaining Coffs Harbour bound galloper is Off To Gilli, a lightly-raced gelding having only his third start.

“He works as good as my other three-year-olds here but he just does a lot wrong,’’ Prosser reported.

“He has got a couple of handy siblings, one of them (Wicked Academy) won a Taree Cup for Kris Lees so he should get out to a bit of a trip down the track.’’

FATHER AND SON READY TO PARTY

Wayne Wilkes is hopeful Party Host can make Thursday’s Sawtell Cup at Coffs Harbour a family affair as he and son Joel chase their first big win of the partnership.

On top of that, Party Host will be ridden by Jackson Murphy who is engaged to the lead-trainer Wayne’s daughter.

There is no doubting Party Host is up for the occasion with two outstanding performances in the Krambach Sprint (1000m) and a 1450m at Kempsey on November 6.

“I think he ran the fastest last 600m of the race in the Krambach Cup,’’ Wayne Wilkes said. “Then he went to Kempsey which is probably not the track that really suits but he has won two from two there.’’

Not only did he walk away unbeaten at Kempsey, he also showed he is not just a barn-stormer going from almost last to sit outside the leader in a small field on a day where the on-pacers excelled.

“Andrew (Gibbons) knew he was going to get back but he made the decision and knew he had to make the first move to get on the go before everyone else. It was a good ride by Andrew and a good tough win by the horse,’’ Wilkes says.

Jockey Jackson Murphy will need to manufacture a great ride to help off-set Party Host’s extremely wide barrier in the Cup.

“We have drawn awkwardly on Thursday but I am sort of going to try and a be a little bit more positive and hopefully he won’t be at the back end of the field where he has to get around so many horses,’’ said Wilkes.

Party Host was bred by Adam Sangster, son of the late global racing and breeding industry giant Robert Sangster, and started out his career racing in Victoria trained by Darren Weir.

Party Host won twice for Weir, one a dead-heat at Ballarat, the other a maiden on St Arnaud Cup day.

“Party Host was bought online at Inglis digital for a bit under $15,000,’’ Wilkes explained.

“He has won a couple for us and has been placed many times so he is definitely paying his way.’’