Overview
Flying Straz arrives at Penola on Friday with two wins and two seconds from four starts this preparation, and barrier one plus a share of the bottom weight in the Bm68 sprint looks like a gift.
That is the anchor of these Penola racing tips, but it is far from the only story on a seven race card that runs from 1:25PM through to 5:10PM. Forever Waiting brings an average finish of second across its last four runs into the 1400m Bm68, Garret Lynch has three runners with two of them coming off second placings, and Rochelle Milnes rides a book of five at a track where she has won three of her six rides. The surface is rated Good to Soft, which suits the honest types more than the brilliant ones. Below you get the track read with jockey and trainer tables, a full race by race, and a closing set of plays covering the NAP, a value runner, a banker for multis, an each-way bet and the course angle worth following all afternoon. Everything is argued on form, profile and connections.
Penola, the setup for Friday
Penola is a country track in the heart of the Coonawarra, and Friday’s card leans heavily on lower grade handicaps and maidens. The Good to Soft rating matters: horses that have shown they can grind out a finish deserve a little extra weight in the book, and the 2000m handicap in Race 5 will be a real staying test in that ground.
Limited course form across today’s fields: most runners have one or two starts here at best, and nobody on the card has three Penola runs. Sharma Princess, Piwhane and Fiorente Rules each won their only start at the track, and Salsbury Hill has a win from two visits, but none of that is enough to build a case on alone.
The riders are a different story. Ten of today’s jockeys have five or more Penola rides, so the table means something.
| Jockey | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rochelle Milnes | 6 | 3 | 5 | 50% | 83% |
| Kayla Crowther | 8 | 1 | 5 | 13% | 63% |
| Tala Hutchinson | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | 60% |
| Campbell Rawiller | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | 60% |
| MS K Walters | 11 | 1 | 5 | 9% | 45% |
| MS S Metcalfe | 7 | 2 | 3 | 29% | 43% |
| Margaret Collett | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0% | 43% |
| Teagan Voorham | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0% | 40% |
| Alysha Warren | 11 | 2 | 3 | 18% | 27% |
| Melissa Julius | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0% | 17% |
Milnes stands out by a distance: five of her six Penola rides have finished in the money. Crowther is the other rider who keeps turning up in the frame here, even if she has converted only once.
| Trainer | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sarah Rutten | 11 | 2 | 8 | 18% | 73% |
| J Hickmott & C Riggs | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0% | 67% |
| Andrew Bobbin | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0% | 67% |
| D I Dodson | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0% | 60% |
| Wayne Walters | 9 | 1 | 4 | 11% | 44% |
| M J Seyers | 6 | 1 | 2 | 17% | 33% |
| L J Cadzow | 4 | 1 | 1 | 25% | 25% |
| P A Preusker | 6 | 1 | 1 | 17% | 17% |
| MS S Murphy | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0% | 14% |
Rutten is the trainer with real volume behind her numbers, placing eight of her eleven Penola runners. She saddles Willebob in Race 2 and Causeweluvadelaide in Race 3.
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Penola racing tips: race by race predictions
Race 1: Access Capital Finance Brokers Mdn Plate, 1:25PM, 1075m
Hard to have a confident view in a maiden where three runners are unraced and the exposed horses have mostly found ways to lose. If forced, Tai Po Jewel gets the nod. A fourth on debut is the only run on the record, but it comes in with the lightest weight in the race and MS S Metcalfe aboard, and she has won two of her seven Penola rides. There is room to improve, and nothing in here has set a high bar.
Egyptians Reign is the obvious danger. It ran third on its only Penola visit, and that local knowledge counts for something on a soft track, though the latest run was unplaced. The Jaensch stable has three runners, including the debutant Bubble Art, and any of them could step up. Watch race. A small win bet on Tai Po Jewel at most.
Race 2: Sportsbet Race Previews Mdn Plate, 2:00PM, 1400m
Who in this field has actually been knocking on the door? Dali’s Picasso has. The last two starts read second then third, that makes two placings from three runs in the past 90 days, and the 1400m trip looks right for a maiden that keeps finding the line. Kayla Crowther takes the ride, and she has put five of her eight Penola mounts in the frame. The James and Lisa Dodgson stable has had just one runner here, and it placed.
Barrier eight in a field of 15 is workable. Crowther can slot in midfield and come off the speed at the turn.
Don’t Say Do is the danger. It was second last start and carries one of the lighter weights, but barrier 14 means covering ground or settling well back. Never Pegasus has a third from three starts and draws inside for the Jaensch team. Willebob deserves respect simply because Sarah Rutten places so many of her runners here. Win and place on Dali’s Picasso.
Race 3: Digiorgio Coonawarra (Bm68), 2:35PM, 1400m
Stargust, the most consistent horse in this field, is scratched, and that changes the shape of the best race on the card. With the clear form horse gone, the question becomes who simply keeps turning up.
Forever Waiting does. The last three runs read third, fourth, third, and across four runs in the past 90 days it has a win and three top three finishes, with an average finishing position of second. It also gets in near the bottom of the weights, which matters on a Good to Soft track over 1400m. Kayla Crowther rides for D I Dodson, a stable that has placed three of its five Penola runners. The knock is a ninth on its only previous visit here, but one run is a data point, not a verdict.
Tour de Moon is the danger. It has placed five times from six runs in the past 90 days, and the eighth last start looks the exception rather than the rule. Sacramental won two in a row before two fifths, carries top weight and needs to bounce back. Piwhane and Fiorente Rules both won their only start here, but neither has current form to back it up.
Back Forever Waiting each-way, with Tour de Moon in a quinella.
Race 4: Adrian Thomas Industrial (Bm68), 3:10PM, 1075m
Rodney Foster has three runners on the card and V Le Boeuf rides all of them, which tells you how the stable sees the day. Flying Straz is the one that matters. This preparation reads second, second, win, win: four runs in the past 90 days and never worse than second.
Everything about the setup suits. Barrier one in a field of ten after the scratching of Zatanna, a share of the lowest weight in the race, and the best recent form of anything engaged. Le Boeuf and Foster have teamed up 27 times for two wins, so the partnership is no winning machine on its own. The horse is doing the work, and the rider just needs to hold the rail and let it roll forward.
Grand Host is the danger. It won two starts back and has placed in three of its last five, but it lumps top weight, a big swing against a rival that already beats most of this field on form. Gusty Way, from the Jaensch yard with Rawiller up, and Brazen Queen, a winner two runs ago, are the next tier.
Win bet on Flying Straz. It is the anchor for any multi or quaddie off this card.
Race 5: Med Electrical Hcp (56), 3:50PM, 2000m
A 2000m handicap on soft ground for this grade of horse rarely runs to a script. Thirteen runners after the scratching of Deficit, over a staying trip, usually means a test from the 600m, and that suits a horse that keeps finding the line. Two runners fit.
Magnetic Edge is the pick. It ran second on its only Penola start, and the last two runs read third then second, so the arrow points the right way. The J Hickmott and C Riggs stable has placed two of its three runners here. Barrier 14 matters less over this trip than anywhere else on the card, because Alysha Warren can drift back and come home late.
Smokin’ Rohie has finished third at each of the last three starts and placed three times from five runs in the past 90 days. It is the most reliable horse in the field without being much of a winner. Easy Beast has also placed three times in five recent runs, and Landmark Alley ran third on its only visit here.
Win on Magnetic Edge. Smokin’ Rohie is the each-way play underneath.
Race 6: Pphs Hcp (54), 4:30PM, 1300m
Garret Lynch has a placing plan at this meeting, and this race shows both sides of it. Sports Choice and Lysander both run for the stable, and both were second at their latest start.
Sports Choice is the main pick. Second at each of the last two runs and three placings from six in the past 90 days: that is a horse in a steady groove. Tala Hutchinson rides, and she has won two of her five Penola rides. The wide draw is the knock, but the field has shrunk with Dodgy Element and They Call Me Dusty scratched, and Hutchinson can take a sit and come wide.
Lysander is the stablemate with the better gate. It jumps from barrier three after a second last start, and Metcalfe has two Penola wins from seven rides. Of the pair, Lysander is the one more likely to be underrated.
Dazelles is the outside danger, with the last three runs reading third, fourth and second. Astrodean carries top weight but has a win among its last four and has Crowther aboard. Unwind, ridden by Milnes, ran fourth on its only Penola start.
Win on Sports Choice, with a small each-way bet on Lysander.
Race 7: Barry Maney Ford Hcp (54), 5:10PM, 1600m
On The Map grinds out placings; Hubristic wins races. In the last race of the day that difference matters.
Hubristic gets the vote. The form line reads 8, 1, 3, 1, 2, 5. In the past 90 days that is one win and two placings from three runs, and the fifth last start followed a win and a second. Garret Lynch trains, and he has won with one of his two Penola runners. Barrier seven gives Connor Murtagh options in a field of 14, with Lynch stablemates Archdeacon and Our Beau both scratched.
On The Map is the safer horse and the bigger danger. It has placed three times from six runs in the past 90 days, and the last three starts read fourth, second, third. It has not won in that period, though, and from barrier five under Tala Hutchinson it probably runs another honest race without quite getting there.
Black Bugatti has placed three times from four recent starts and carries Milnes, whose Penola record makes her worth following anywhere on this card. Hasta la Prince was second at two of its last three but faces a wide draw and finished seventh on its only Penola start.
Win on Hubristic. Add On The Map and Black Bugatti in a trifecta.
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Where the money goes
NAP: Flying Straz (Race 4, 3:10PM). Four runs this preparation and never out of the first two, and now the draw and the weights both fall its way. There is no more complete profile on the card.
Value: Lysander (Race 6, 4:30PM). Second last start, yet it is the Lynch runner that will draw less attention. An inside gate and a rider with two Penola wins give it every chance to turn the tables on Sports Choice.
Banker: Forever Waiting (Race 3, 2:35PM). With the Race 3 favourite of the form book gone, this is the horse that rarely misses the frame: three top three finishes from four recent runs and an average finish of second. In a multi, that reliability matters more than brilliance.
Each-way: Smokin’ Rohie (Race 5, 3:50PM). Three straight thirds is about as dependable as place form gets, and a soft-ground 2000m race should bring the reliable types into it.
Course angle: Rochelle Milnes. She has won three of her six Penola rides and placed on five. Her book of Iamthedevilselbow, Fiorente Rules, Back Me Up Benny, Unwind and Black Bugatti is worth a close look in every race she rides.
If Flying Straz makes it three wins in a row on Friday, the Le Boeuf and Foster team will be the combination to follow at the spring country meetings.
FAQ
What time does racing start at Penola today?
Race 1, the Access Capital Finance Brokers Mdn Plate over 1075m, jumps at 1:25PM. The last race, the Barry Maney Ford Hcp (54) over 1600m, goes at 5:10PM, and the track is rated Good to Soft.
Who are the top jockeys and trainers at Penola?
Rochelle Milnes leads today’s Penola jockeys, placing on 5 of her 6 rides at the track with 3 winners. Kayla Crowther has placed on 5 of her 8 rides here. Sarah Rutten is the standout trainer, with 8 placings from 11 runners, 2 of them winners.
What are the best bets at Penola today?
Flying Straz in Race 4 is the NAP, with 2 wins and 2 seconds from 4 runs in the past 90 days and barrier one. Forever Waiting in Race 3 is the banker with 3 top three finishes from 4 recent runs after Stargust was scratched, and Smokin’ Rohie is the each-way play in Race 5 after three straight thirds. Those are our Penola best bets.
Where can I find the best Penola odds?
Markets for Friday’s Penola card were not yet open at the time of writing. Check the bookmaker comparison above once prices go up, especially for Race 3, where the scratching of Stargust has left the hardest race on the card to call.