Adrian Bott has described Agrarian Girl’s determination as her standout quality, stating she merits an opportunity to qualify for the Golden Slipper following a successful first-up victory in the Lonhro Plate at Randwick.
Dispatched at $31 odds even after defeating last week’s Canonbury Stakes victor Hidrix in a recent barrier trial, Agrarian Girl surged forward to contest the pace before seeming poised to yield to the eventual placegetter Spicy Miss ($3.70).
Undeterred, she rallied strongly and drew away once more at the finish to prevail by a half-length, with Savage Look ($61) a further 1-3/4 lengths back in third position.
Bott indicated the triumph was anticipated within the stable, believing the filly’s close trial success could have understated her potential since she was continuing to mature.
“Maybe she has looked a little bit under pressure in her trials, but she has still been learning and developing, and she responded in those and that’s exactly what she did today,” Bott said.
“She has been a very talented filly all the way through. We did feel we were throwing her a little bit in the deep end, we did have her nominated for Canberra yesterday as well.
In fairness, off her trials and the way she looked, she just looked too magnificent to pass up racing here for a bit of black type on her home track.”
Agrarian Girl’s achievement has secured her a shot at earning a berth in the Golden Slipper (1200m), with Bott noting they will consider the optimal path forward.
“I think we have to. Whether that’s through a Silver Slipper or we trial into a race like the Reisling (Stakes), she has certainly got to be in contention with that tenacity she showed today,” he said.
“I’m sure there is some really nice improvement to come.”
Agrarian Girl provided jockey Winona Costin with an early brace after she guided the Craig Carmody-prepared Zenmaster to a front-running success in the day’s opener, and Costin expressed gratitude to Bott and co-trainer Gai Waterhouse for the stakes ride.
“I’ve always been able to get a fair few two-year-old winners for them so it’s good to get one in town for them,” Costin said.
The winner’s barn companion Lady Moscato jumped as the $3.60 elect and ended up fourth having travelled wide without cover.
The filly was resuming from a runner-up effort on debut at the Gold Coast last month, and Bott considered she would benefit from the outing.
“She was honest. She just got a little bit keen outside the lead,” he said.
“Maybe the time between races for her, she’s still got plenty of time to keep improving.”
Agrarian Girl has tightened from $101 to $34 in Golden Slipper betting. Punters can explore the latest Australian betting sites for competitive odds on her Slipper campaign.
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