Hieland Laddie scored a tough win in taking out the third heat of the MIA Breeders Plate on Saturday for Morundah trainer-driver David Druitt.
Moving around to race without cover, the son of Gotta Go Cullect still had too much power in the finish running past leader Jackeroo Shannon ($39.40) to win by 2.3 metres.
Afer taking out by far the slowest of the three heats, rating 2:03.8, Druitt isn’t confident of his chances in Friday’s $40,000 final.
“He’s very intelligent, very easy to get along with, very quiet and is a lovely race horse but he will probably be an outside hope in the Plate unless he draws one or two,” Druitt said.
“He is the quietest, easiest to get along with two-year-old I’ve had.
“From the day we broke him in I knew we had an early two-year-old.”
“He’s just a natural.”
In a twist on his first workout at Leeton, Hieland Laddie dead heated with fellow heat winner Jovial Rock.
