Victory is being chased in the Grand Syndicates Australasian Oaks

Leon Macdonald & Andrew Gluyas are chasing victory in the Group 1 Grand Syndicates Australasian Oaks.

Morphettville horseman Andrew Gluyas is optimistic he and Leon Macdonald can become the first locals in a decade to win the Australasian Oaks (2000m) when they saddle up a two-pronged attack in Saturday’s Group 1 contest. No South Australian trainer has won the coveted three-year-old classic since Phillip Stokes’ filly Maybe Discreet landed the prize in 2013.

Macdonald and Gluyas will be represented by blueblood filly Party Princess and Adelaide Magic Millions Yearling Sale purchase, Arugamama, in the Oaks.

The latter said the stable was delighted to be chasing a Group 1 win on their home track. Macdonald won the Oaks with Minegold in 1997, well before Gluyas started his career as a trainer.

“It’s nice to have a couple of fillies come through and have genuine chances in one of our classics,” Gluyas said. “They’ve both come a long way this preparation – neither of them are the genuine article yet and there will be a lot of racing ahead of them so the journey is only early but to have them present into this Saturday, it’s exciting for our team. Having live chances in Group 1 races on your doorstep gets you up and about.”

Spearheading the stable’s assault on the race is Party Princess, the younger sister of recently-retired pin-up horse Dalasan. Having won her maiden at Strathalbyn earlier in the campaign, the filly ran a narrow second in the Listed Clare Lindop Stakes (1600m) at Morphettville last month before missing the Group 3 Auraria Stakes (1800m) due to an untimely foot abscess.

Gluyas said Party Princess had recovered well from her minor setback and, if her gallop on Tuesday morning is any indication, she is ready to run a strong 2000m in the Oaks.

“There are similarities between Party Princess and Dalasan in terms of their racing, but there are some obvious differences as well,” he said. “She’s becoming more professional with every morning that she heads out onto the track and he was a professional from day one really.”

“She’s done well (since missing the Auraria). We were a little concerned on the Saturday and then still on the Sunday morning because things weren’t progressing as we thought so we missed a little bit of time there. But we did get her back on the track and she had a really sturdy gallop that Thursday following so we believe that we’ve got the work into her.”

“It’s not ideal to miss an opportunity and to scratch a favourite in a Group race but in saying that, she did get an extra run early in the preparation when we took her to Strathalbyn to break her maiden. She presented beautifully on Tuesday morning and she had a really good workout so we think we’ve got her right on target.”

While Glyuas is loath to label Arugamama as the stable’s second-stringer in the race, the market has her rated a longer price than Party Princess, despite minor placings in both the Clare Lindop Stakes and the Auraria Stakes.

The trainer said the step to 2000m will suit the daughter of Churchill, who could also progress to either the South Australian Derby (2500m) or the SA Fillies Classic (2500m) later in the carnival. “She’s probably not as brilliant when asked to let down when compared to Party Princess but she definitely rallied and the concluding stages of all her races have been really promising,” he said.

“They’ve given the indication that further than 2000m is probably the go. She’ll get that opportunity (to run over 2000m) on Saturday and then we’ll make some decisions about some of those 2500m races on the horizon.”

Jockey Jason Holder will continue his association with Party Princess, while apprentice Lachlan Neindorf will chase a maiden Group 1 win on Arugamama.