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Will Hudson aids us with programming and identifies who he thinks is the best placed horse each weekend. Alalcance, Saturday 23rd November, Kembla Grange, Race 5:Alalcance couldn’t have been more impressive when winning on her Australian debut at Warwick Farm in September. On that occasion she was first-up over 2100 metres off the back of two trials, and here she’s first-up over 2000 metres off the back of two trials so it’s a very similar pattern. Racing a horse first-up over 2000 metres would ordinarily be a big ‘no’ in terms of Gai and Adrian’s rules, but with European imports it’s a bit different because as Gai says, “all they do is gallop” and this mare is no exception. She’s up in grade here to a Saturday class Benchmark 78 Handicap which will require more, but she won by nearly 4 lengths at Warwick Farm so she looks more than capable of cutting it at this level and hopefully she’s too strong for them.

SATURDAY 22ND NOVEMBER – KEMBLARail Position: RAIL - TrueALALCANCE (Race 5, 2.55pm, 2000m, T Clark, 57.5kg)Alalcance is Spanish for within reach, however her rivals at Warwick Farm couldn’t lay a glove on her and they were simply no match as she strode clear of the field for a dominant 3.74 length victory. She has come back in excellent shape following her short freshen up and she looks terrific ahead of her return to action. She has shown good improvement in her trackwork following her two trials this time in and we are excited to see how far she can progress this preparation. She’s going to relish this 2000 metres trip first-up, and whilst the rise in grade to Benchmark 78 company requires more from her the way she won at Warwick Farm suggest she’s more than capable of rising to the challenge. Barrier 15 is a bit tricky, but Tim knows our horses very well and he will be positive from there to try and work forward and get her into a prominent position where she can travel comfortably as she'll appreciate a genuinely run race. She’s a progressive mare who still has plenty of upside, so if she can enjoy a smooth run in transit we expect her to be challenging at the finish. SILENT IMPACT (Race 6, 3.30pm, 1400m, T Clark, 59kg)Silent Impact looks excellent ahead of his first start this preparation. We were pleased with the way that he found the line in his latest trial at Rosehill earlier this month, and he’s coming up well at this stage in the campaign. He ran very well to finish a close second over 1300 metres in his return at Rosehill last preparation, so we know he’s more than capable over this trip first-up and he goes well fresh with two first-up victories in his career to date. Tim knows him well and will be positive from his good draw in barrier 3 to try and work forward and dictate the tempo of the race to suit himself. We know he’s talented on his day, and if he can enjoy a smooth run in transit we expect to see him hitting the line strongly to get his preparation off to an encouraging start. RAF ATTACK (Race 7, 4.05pm, 1600m, A Hyeronimus, 58.5kg)Raf Attack ran another solid race in his most recent start at Hawkesbury and was strong through the line yet again. He’s a frustrating horse to watch on occasions as we know how talented he is when he puts it all together, but to his credit he’s been racing consistently and holding his form very well so far this preparation and he deserves to get back into the Winner’s Circle for you all. He’s come through his latest run in pleasing shape and his coat looks terrific, so we can't fault him. He continues to work with plenty of enthusiasm and we’ve freshened him up nicely ahead of this outing, so he's going into this race in excellent shape. We schooled him over the jumps on Thursday morning to try and alter his routine and to switch him on mentally ahead of Saturday, and it appeared to have the desired effect as he was full of himself afterwards. The way he hit the line at Hawkesbury last time suggests he'll relish stretching back out to a mile, and the big track at Kembla is another positive for him. He's found himself in a tough race for the grade, but he's a very happy horse who continues to do well and we hope to see him fighting out the finish once again. ROCK EMPIRE (Race 7, 4.05pm, 1600m, T Clark, 55kg)Rock Empire ran a solid race first-up from a break and he was just outsprinted in the closing stages by race fit rivals over a trip that we knew he would improve from. As such, we expect him to relish this rise in distance to 1600 metres second-up, and the slightly steadier tempo over this trip should enable him to get into a more comfortable rhythm in the run. Tim will be positive from his plum draw in barrier 1 to hopefully get him bowling along towards the head of the field where he can relax and travel sweetly. He’s rising in grade to Benchmark 88 company, and an especially strong one at that with a horse rated 94 at the head of the field, so taking on these much more seasoned horses is not going to be easy. However, he drops 5kg in the weights from his last run which is a big positive and he's open to plenty of improvement stepping out in trip to the mile. He’s a progressive individual who is thriving on his work, and if he enjoys a smooth run in transit we expect him to be staying on strongly in the run to the line.  CONVERGE (Race 8, 4.45pm, 1600m, T Clark, 56kg)Converge has become an inconsistent performer but he continues to thrive on his work and his latest trial was excellent. We were delighted with the way he worked through the line at Randwick on that occasion to be an impressive 2.83 length winner of his heat, and he appears to have taken plenty of confidence from that outing. We can’t fault his trackwork all campaign and we just need him to bring his level of work in the mornings to the racetrack now. Whilst dropping back to the mile is not our usual preference, the prospect of a strongly run race that's going to place an emphasis on stamina is going to play to his strengths. The expansive track at Kembla should suit him well and Tim will let him land where he's comfortable from barrier 10. He’s in terrific shape and he looks great, so if he turns up in the right frame of mind and enjoys a good run in transit he's more than capable of challenging at the finish.  THE NOVEILST (Race 10, 5.55pm, 1200m, M Bourke, 61.5kg)The Novelist ran a bit of a strange race in his latest outing at Rosehill. He looked like he was going to drop out approaching the final furlong, but he then stuck to his task bravely and kept plugging on in the run to the line to not be beaten too far. He’s come through that start in wonderful order, and despite having shown plenty of speed in his career to date it might just be that he's now looking for 1200 metres and perhaps further in time. As such, the step up to this distance is hopefully going to bring about further improvement and Molly will be positive from barrier 3 to try and repeat the front running tactics she deployed last time. If he can control the race from the front and show his turn of foot at the top of the straight it should make him hard to catch, so fingers crossed he enjoys a smooth and economical run in transit and can do just this. SATURDAY 22ND NOVEMBER – CRANBOURNERail Position: RAIL - Out 3m Entire CircuitAMBASSADORIAL (Race 6, 3.10pm, 2025m, B Mertens, 55kg) Ambassadorial ran another solid race in his most recent start at Rosehill. He was up in grade and he didn't shirk his task when challenged, and he was strong through the line once again. He’s come through that run in terrific shape, and he is in great order at present so we can't fault him. He’s settled into our Flemington stable extremely well since his arrival which was to be expected as he's spent plenty of time there previously, and he’s continued to work with plenty of enthusiasm. He’s rising in grade slightly to Benchmark 84 level here, but he’s down in the weights as a result and he's open to further improvement in his second attempt at 2000 metres this campaign. Beau will be positive from barrier 10 to try and get across into a more favourable position where he can establish himself in a prominent position towards the head of the pack and travel in a good rhythm. This is another competitive contest on paper, but he remains in great shape and if he is able to enjoy a smooth run in transit we expect him to be challenging at the finish yet again.