Dubbo trainer Clint Lundholm will have nine horses from his stable racing across Derby Day, but there are two in particular the trainer sees as strong chances when the action begins on Saturday.
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The first, Tuncoona, has seen mixed success of late, after a lengthy spell that carried the mare from last year into this year, following a successful trial in Wellington, she placed second there, before finding fourth in a tough field in Orange.
A setback in Lundholm's hometown of Coonamble followed, where the mare struggled down a 1200m stretch before falling to last place.
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But despite that result, Lundholm is still confident that Tuncoona has what it takes to take out a win in the Benchmark 66 Handicap on Saturday.
"Yeah, I'm pretty confident with her, I think she'll definitely have a bounce back to her usual consistent form," Lundholm said.
"It was a disappointing run at Coonamble for us, we went up there confident she'd run a nice rice, but it didn't end up going our way, all in all it was a stronger race than what she'll face tomorrow."
Tuncoona will also be boosted by the presence of veteran jockey Greg Ryan, who'll be guiding the mare in her efforts at the Turf Club.
"Just a bigger class there and I think being at home on home turf will do her a world of good, I think she's going to be able to bounce back strong."
Lundholm's other hope, Conspirator, is still an unproven prospect, but the gelding showed strong form in a first place finish trialling in Dubbo last month.
"I think Conspirator should do well, it looks a really nice race to kick off your racing career, it'd be good to start that strong, there was a little bit of mixed form in that trial and he's trained on well since then."
Conspirator will feature alongside Lundholm's Dead On Time in the curtain pulling Rhino Lodge Maiden Handicap at 12.55pm.
"It looks like a really great start to a career for him."
Despite the two standouts, Lundholm is content with the rest of his stable's chances, noting that there's a good chance for more wins throughout the day.
"I think with everything we've got nine runners, each and every one of them you could make a case for. There's good each way betting, there'll be a few with some good each way bets and I'd expect them to be good chances."
