Cover image courtesy of Tasracing
This exciting daughter of Needs Further made it three wins from three starts in Hobart, leading home the trifecta for her trainer Stuart Gandy in the Listed 2-year-old feature.
The talented filly displayed blistering acceleration, storming home from just off the speed to defeat a fast finishing Crack The Shutters (Alpine Eagle) by 0.4l, with a further 1.2l back to Geegees Missile (Wordsmith) in third.
“She’s got a terrific turn of foot, I don’t think it would matter where she was in the run,” Gandy said.
Zany Girl as a yearling | Image courtesy of Sharon Chapman
“She had come on from her last run. They were all presented in fantastic order. I couldn’t be prouder really. I’m proud of the team.
“I think her form tells you how good she is. She has a very good turn of foot. Probably one of the best turns of foot of a 2-year-old I have trained. She’s not big and I was concerned early on that she needed another hand on her but I don’t think it really matters. She has a long stride and a good turn of foot. When Darmanin says go, she goes.
“They are by three different sires and they are all champions in their own right. The second horse is going to be something really, really special. The third horse needs to draw a gate but she’s going super too. It doesn’t get much better.
“I’m just absolutely privileged to have such nice horses.”
The winning run continues for Prime Thoroughbreds
The win continued a massive weekend for Joe O’Neill’s Prime Thoroughbreds who had Bivouac filly Cavalry Girl dominate her rivals at Flemington at just her second start on Saturday, after finishing second behind Blue Diamond fancy Cherish Me (Brazen Beau) on debut.
“Zany Girl’s a good filly,” O’Neill said.
Joe O’Neill | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“I don’t think there is a lot between her and Cavalry Girl. She will go to the Tasmanian Magic Millions on the 2nd of February and then she will go to the Gold Sovereign Stakes, all being well. Obviously, 2-year-olds can go off but she is very sound and she has very good confirmation. I think I only had one horse vetted at the sales last year. I said, she’s the one I want to buy so I had her vetted and I bought her and she is a fantastic filly. She has won all three Tasmanian 2-year-old races this season.
“She’s as good a 2-year-old as I’ve had in Tasmania. I’ve won all the good juvenile races down there. I’ve won three Magic Millions, I’ve won the Elwick Stakes, I’ve won the Gold Sovereign but this filly is as good as any of them.”
“She’s as good a 2-year-old as I’ve had in Tasmania. I’ve won all the good juvenile races down there. I’ve won three Magic Millions, I’ve won the Elwick Stakes, I’ve won the Gold Sovereign but this filly is as good as any of them.” - Joe O’Neill
One of the most pleasing aspects from O’Neill's perspective is that she was able to overcome trouble in each of her three starts to date.
“Nothing has gone right for Zany Girl at her past two runs,” O’Neill said.
“She has missed the start, and got to the wrong part of the track and she still managed to come out and beat them.”
Highlighting the strength of Tasmanian 2-year-old form, last year’s winner of the Elwick Stakes, also trained by Gandy, Geegees Mistruth (Wordsmith) subsequently went to Melbourne and placed in the G3 Quezette S. and the G3 Champagne S., before finishing third in the G2 Thousand Guineas Prelude at Caulfield.
“The horse she beat was actually Geegees Mistruth’s full sister,” O’Neill said. “When you get a good 2-year-old down there they can be quite useful, and this one is a very good 2-year-old.”
A memory of a 2-year-old star
O’Neill purchased Zany Girl from the 2024 Magic Millions Tasmanian Yearling Sale for just $65,000 from the draft of Armidale Stud, where her sire Needs Further stands. O’Neill indicated it was a close resemblance to former topline 2-year-old French Braids (Flying Spur) that caught his attention at the sale.
“We had a filly years ago, Billy Mitchell and I, called French Braids who won the Silver Slipper and who should have won the Golden Slipper,” O’Neill said.
Needs Further | Standing at Armidale Stud
“She won the first $1 million race in Sydney called the Heroic Championship, way back in 2000. She’s a lot like her. She is very well put together, she has lovely attitude, a beautiful confirmation and a wonderful attitude. She’s also very strong through the hindquarters and chest. She’s not a big filly but that doesn’t worry me, it never has. Snippets' Lass, the mother of Snitzel and Hinchinbrook was only a tiny little mare. Racehorses only have to be athletic, you don’t want a big cumbersome thing that looks like an elephant.”
“She’s (Zany Girl) a lot like her (French Braids). She is very well put together, she has lovely attitude, a beautiful confirmation and a wonderful attitude. She’s also very strong through the hindquarters and chest. She’s not a big filly but that doesn’t worry me, it never has - Joe O’Neill
An attractive nick, was also a point of interest for O’Neill when inspecting Zany Girl as a yearling. She is the third winner from four to race from the Ladoni (GB) mare Isn't Life Strange, who is a half-sister to stakes winners Life To The Full (Savoire Vivre {GB}) and What Life Brings (Savoire Vivre {GB}). When crossed with Needs Further, Ladoni mares have produced 6 winners, 2 at stakes level from just nine runners.
“Ladoni, he’s a son Danehill, and the Whishaw’s brought him out to Tasmania years ago,” O’Neill said.
“He’s a good broodmare sire and if you look at the cross with Needs Further, it is very potent.
“She’s also by a very good sire, I mean he had Mystic Journey who was a champion 3-year-old. He can get a nice horse, Needs Further.”
Thrilling racing on the horizon
It’s an exciting time ahead for Prime Thoroughbreds, with many of the syndications stars about to make a return, while his current 2-year-olds forge ahead towards some rich targets.
“Cavalry Girl now heads to the $2 million Inglis Millennium on February 8 at Randwick,” O’Neill said.
“She is a natural runner and lovely type. She is by Bivouac and I just bought another one from the Magic Millions. I really like Bivouac, I think he is going to be a super sire. She was never going to get beaten on Saturday."
Gallery: Cavalry Girl and connections, images courtesy of Racing Photos
“We’ve also got Shadhavar, who I think is one of the most exciting horses I’ve had in a long time, running in the Peter Le Grand Stakes on that day and the Cunning Fox has come back enormous, he is being set for The Galleywood. Seonee is back today with Patrick and Michelle Payne and is being set for the Coolmore Classic."
“We have a heap of nice 2-year-olds yet to hit the track too. We have a horse that has just come back into work by Shamus Award called Shefflin with the Payne’s. I think he is very smart. We also have a Lucky Vega down in Tasmania called Miss Lyra that won a trial by two and a half lengths, she looks like being a smart filly as well. She’s out of an I Am Invincible mare, just like Cavalry Girl.”
Magic Millions purchases
O’Neill has been busy sourcing the next generation of Prime Thoroughbreds at the recent Gold Coast Magic Millions sale where he picked up four Lots, at an average of $170,000.
“The plan was to secure four yearlings,” O’Neill said.
“I achieved this with the purchase of the Hellbent-Flying Jess filly, Lot 411 from Yarraman Park. She is a stunning filly out of an outstanding mare who gave us a great thrill winning the Magic Millions Guineas in 2017 where she beat some very high profile 3-year-olds including Global Glamour and Winning Rupert. She will head to Tom Dabernig to train.
“We also picked up Lot 148, a cracking colt by Hellbent which will go to John Thompson, Lot 199 an Alabama Express filly which will be trained by Patrick and Michelle Payne, and Lot 26 a filly by Cavalry Girl’s sire Bivouac who will also be trained by Tom Dabernig.”
Gallery: The next generation of Prime Thoroughbreds
The half-sister to Zany Girl, by Gold Standard, will be presented by Armidale Stud as Lot 21 at this year's Magic Millions Tasmanian Yearling Sale.
Zany Girl is the eighth stakes winner for Needs Further, who is based at Armidale Stud, in Carrick, Tasmania.
