Playing God Blessed With a Top Speed Family

08-12-2011

PLAYING GOD, the son of the Danehill sire Blackfriars who took the $500,000 Group1 Kingston Town Classic (1800m) at Ascot, Perth on Saturday for the second successive year, is from a family that consistently throws up fleet footed quality performers.  Also winner of the Western Australian Guineas, Aquanita Stakes and Magic Millions Perth 3YO Trophy, runner up in the Western Australian Derby and third at Flemington in the Australian Cup, Australian Guineas and Turnbull Stakes, this 4-year-old stallion, to start with, is a year younger brother of God Has Spoken, winner of seven races from 1100 to 2000m in Perth.

God Has Spoken’s performances have included wins in three Group 3s, the Sires’ Produce Stakes, Strickland Stakes and R.J. Peters Stakes, second placing in the 2009 Kingston Town and a fourth in the Western Australian Derby.  The brothers are two of eight winners from Dolly Will Do, a Rubiton filly who won ran 21 times and won five at 1200m in her first ten outings, including one at Warwick Farm by 3.1 lengths and three at Rosehill Gardens, one by 2.3 lengths and another by 1.3 lengths. She was a Listed second and a handy eighth of 16 in a Group1 at Rosehill Gardens.

Dolly Will Do’s pedigree has three doses of Star Kingdom in it, supplied through his son Todman (the sire of the grandam of Rubiton), her sire Taipan (American bred son of Bold Ruler and exported Star Kingdom VRC Lightning Stakes winner Ritmar) and her fourth dam Star Empress. A winner twice in Sydney at two, Star Empress was nearly a three-quarter sister by Star Kingdom to Royal Rene, a Todman winner of 12 races in Sydney, including the Tramway and Australia Day Handicap, and second at the same venue in the Epsom and George Main.  Star Empress was one of six winners from Irex, a half-sister by champion sire Midstream to tough sprinter 1600m performer El Golea. He won 16 races from 1200m to 2600m, including the VRC Newmarket and VATC Toorak Handicap (dead-heat), finished third in an AJC Doncaster and became a handy sire.

Closer in, Playing God’s third dam Tudor Vain, was one of the toughest Vain mares, winning 17 sprint races, including several in Sydney. She was from Lady Shyly, a Sydney winning half-sister by Pipe of Peace to Messalina, dam of Sky Duke, a gelding who competed138 times in Western Australia for 19 wins, nine of them on Perth tracks.  Sky Duke was one of the progeny supplied at the Woodlands Stud in the Hunter Valley by the Star Kingdom champion Sky High before he was exported to America, where he got Autobiography, setter of a national record for two miles.

Raced by the Cockatoo Ridge Syndicate (Colin and Caroline Loxton) and prepared on Ascot by Neville Parnham, his buyer for $27,000 at the Magic Millions Perth yearling sale, Playing Our Song was bred by the Durham Lodge Stud at Muchea, about an hour’s drive north of Perth.  Owned by David and Rita Smith and managed by Jeremy Smith, Durham Lodge is riding on the crest of a wave as a source of top performers. Besides Playing God (Western Australian Horse of the Year for 2010-11) and God Has Spoken, recent graduates of the stud have included international star Scenic Blast (eight wins, $2million, VRC Newmarket, Lightning Stakes, Royal Ascot King’s Stand Stakes, second Caulfield Guineas and in America in the Group1 Del Mar Bing Crosby Stakes), Coniston Bluebird (four wins, $1.81million, New Zealand Derby) and Gilded Venom (20 starts for eight wins, $1.131million, WATC Railway Stakes, C.B. Cox Stakes, second 2008 Kingston Town).

Scenic Blast  and Coniston Bluebird are both by Scenic, the Sadler’s Wells sire who died at Durham Lodge in March 2005, and Gilded Venom by Victorian based Golden Snake (USA).  All these performers are from mares bought by the stud at Inglis sales in eastern Australia for modest outlays. Dolly Will Do cost $24,000, Daughter’s Charm, dam of both Scenic Blast and Gilded Venom, was picked up for only $12,000 and Turbo Lady, producer of Coniston Bluebird, was acquired for $40,000.

Western Australia’s Champion Sire for 2010-11 with 52 winners (6 SWs) of 97 races and $3,361,717, Blackfriars, the sire of Playing God and God Has Spoken, is a Victoria Derby winner who is one of five stakes winners bred by the Sangster’s Swettenham stud using Danehill and Kensington Gardens, a Sydney winner and AJC Oaks placed daughter of Grosvenor, one of Sir Tristram’s best sons.  

Courtesy of Brian Russell Bloodstock Media Services