| Whilst on the
surface, Thursday night's Moonee Valley meeting may not have held much interest for cross
- country fans, closer scrutiny raised further interest in the future prospects of up and
coming hurdler, Unanswered. Fresh from his victory at
Terang on New Year’s day, Unanswered galloped over the 3000metres of the night’s
final event with a newfound zest that left young Cranbourne trainer, Matthew Hyland
extremely satisfied with the 5yo’s performance, his first success on the flat since
May 11 last year.
Whilst not getting carried away with the victory, Hyland
believes Unanswered’s rejuvenated attitude is a direct result of his outing over the
obstacles. " He was going around like an old slug before, but that hurdle has brought
him right along - it was just what he needed. " he stated.
The only question for Unanswered is where to from here,
with his trainer of the opinion that the mixture of integrating hurdle and flat races
could prove a very profitable recipe in the months ahead.
Hyland explained the formula could well see the gelding
stepping up in class in the near future. " I’ll just poke along with him at the
moment, but if he keeps showing his current interest, he’ll probably be aimed at the
Autumn Hurdle followed by the Duke of Norfolk Stakes (LR). "he said.
"Jumping’s definitely going to be his caper in
the long term though" he added.
And that is great news for our fraternity, who will be
keeping a close eye on Unanswered’s progress in the weeks to come and eagerly
awaiting his next appointment over the sticks.
Don Cooper |
