Kembla Grange meeting has been postponed..
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The track has been rated a Heavy 10 this week after significant recent rainfall, before a track inspection was held on Saturday at 6am to make the decision.
"Today's race meeting has been postponed due to the state of the track with a further 6mm overnight and a total of 216mm this week," Racing NSW stewards posted on Twitter on Saturday.
It comes as a major upgrade of the main track surface is planned, following numerous abandoned meetings in recent times.
Randwick will host a nine-race meeting with Markwell's Esteem Spirit in the last, a Benchmark 78 over 1400m.
A quick back-up and significant weight relief could be just the recipe for Randwick success for the Gwenda Markwell stable.
Weight relief
Brock Ryan claims two kilograms on Esteem Spirit in Saturday's Benchmark 78 over 1400m, meaning the six-year-old gelding will carry just 52.5kgs, five down on his last start at Kembla Grange and eight less than the two previous starts this preparation.
Esteemed Spirit loomed in the straight in a Conditional Benchmark 68 last week, but was unable to reel in winner Reiby's Regent or runner-up Rabbit Clause. And while he is listed at $31, Esteem Spirit has shown promise in city grade before, running nicely into second in a BM78 behind Royal Tudor at Randwick in February.
It came before doing his best work late when ninth behind Animate in the Provincial Championships final at Newcastle.
Markwell, meantime, is hoping to unearth a couple of future stars in a race named in her honour at Kembla Grange's six-race meeting on Saturday.
Three-year-old gelding Happy Mondays debuts off one educational trial at Rosehill, while Foxwedge gelding Phonemic also steps out for the first time.
Among Markwell's other contenders include Speed And Style in a 1200m BM64, with jockey Tyler Schiller's claim bringing the seven-year-old mares weight back to 58kg, second up from a spell.
Comeback trail
After returning to the independent training ranks three years ago following his tenure at Godolphin, John O'Shea had to virtually start over.
Rebuilding his stable from the ground up, patience was his best friend as he blooded a team of mostly young and inexperienced horses.
But with 27 Sydney winners last season, almost triple his tally of 12 months earlier, the fruits of his labour are starting to show.
O'Shea is again preparing to be a carnival force and his next step is to unearth a flagship horse.
"Just trying to find a good Group 1 horse. If we find one of them it will be a big help," O'Shea said.
Opacity will edge closer to his return when he steps out in a barrier trial at Randwick on Friday. He is slated to resume in the Tramway Stakes on September 5.
"If he runs well in the Tramway, we will get him ready for the Epsom," O'Shea said.
O'Shea has a talented trio heading to Randwick on Saturday, including Bravado in the Group 3 Up And Coming Stakes (1300m).
A winner on debut at Kembla Grange, Bravado was a closing third to Saturday's rival Smart Image at Rosehill last month in the race marred by Andrew Adkins' fall. with AAP