Peter Snowden unearths spring contender with Raging Force bringing up hat-trick at Rosehill
Champion jockey Tommy Berry is the number one ticketholder in Raging Force's growing fan club after a dominant win in the Thank You ATC Members Handicap (1100m).
Berry said the promising young sprinter is simply 'too good' to be racing at this stage of the season.
• PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
'Raging Force definitely has stakes potential,' Berry said.
'He is still learning his craft but I loved the way he took that gap in the straight.
'He still has to make more improvement which I think he will. He's improving with every start and you don't see how good they are until they race against the better quality of horses because that brings the best out of them.'
Trained by the maestro Peter Snowden, Raging Force was confidently backed into $1.70 favouritism and completed a hat-trick of wins when he scored easily by 2¼ lengths from Horseshoe Hill ($7) with nearly three lengths to Lull ($21) third.
Raging Force showed promise at the early season barrier trials but pulled up sore when unplaced on debut in the Breeders Plate.
Snowden gave the two-year-old plenty of time to recover and waited until winter to take the gelding back to the races, winning the Red Crown at Muswellbrook first-up, then winning by a big margin at the Kensington midweeks before making the rise to Sydney Saturday grade look routine.
'Raging Force was very good today,' Berry said.
'I was very proud of the way he reacted to the situation that unfolded in the first furlong and a half.
'When he jumped so well I was a bit positive to try and hold that lead but they went quick and I let them cross.
'He got his head up for two or three strides but then came back under me. It just shows his versatility, how 'smart' he is now and how much he is willing to work with us.
'I could have sent him to the line without the stick today but I did that last time and I thought I would help him find the line as he has tougher tasks ahead.
'I still feel he will be better at 1200m and 1400m when he can get into a rhythm, relax, and it is not all 100 miles an hour. He is simply too good for them at the moment.'
Raging Force continues the outstanding season of leading syndicator Scott Darby of Darby Racing which has already yielded more than 100 winners including the Group 1 Winterbottom Stakes, Group 2 wins in The Ingham, Shannon Stakes, and Ajax Stakes, Group 3 wins in the Sydney Stakes, Brisbane Cup, Sweet Embrace Stakes, Newcastle Stakes, Parramatta Cup, Queen Elizabeth II Cup and Liverpool City Cup, plus a host of Listed races.
'I purchased Raging Force at the Classic Sale for $150,000. We bought him purely on type, he is a lovely horse,' Darby said.
'He will have two weeks off then we will plan a spring campaign for him.'
The promising rising three-year-old is a son of Snowden's former crack sprinter Cosmic Force, winner of the 2019 Pago Pago Stakes by seven lengths before finishing unplaced as favourite to Kiamichi in the Golden Slipper.
Snowden wasn't on track at Rosehill but his stable representative Aaron Lau confirmed there are plans to set Raging Force for some of the better three-year-old races in spring.
'We're going to tip him out for a couple of weeks. Obviously, the spring isn't far, it will be on our doorstep very shortly,' Lau said.
'We just wanted to get today over and done with and see where he stood. He was up against a few last start winners and Bjorn's horse (Baker, trainer of Horseshoe Hill) goes very well, as does Blake Ryan's, he rates his horse (Just Awesome) as well so it was nice to see Raging Force do it today.
'He's got a great attitude, a lovely, big action and he's probably better on top of the ground as well. He's very progressive and it's exciting going forward.'
Raging Force's hat-trick of winter wins means he is 'officially in the black' with nearly $170,000 prizemoney – and the promise of a lot more to come.
Berry said Raging Force's improvement from race to race was evident in the first 200m of his Rosehill Win.
'All he wants to do is relax and when he jumped he put his head straight on his chest but I thought we will end up three pairs back on the fence so I had to push him along to hold the lead,' he said.
'Then they wanted to go too quick so I asked him to come back and after a couple of strides he was sweet.
'I stayed about a length and a half back so I had options to go around them if I needed but I could see Regan's horse (Bayliss on Just Awesome) runs around a bit. I thought he is going to give us some room at some point and he did.
'But I think Pete's masterstroke was to take him away to Muswellbrook and then even after that another trip away to Wyong for the trials as education.
'He may have still won those two races anyway but I don't think he would have executed as well today if he had not had those trips away.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Michael Hickmott weighs in with a double at Gawler
The Michael Hickmott stable had a day out at Gawler with two winners carrying big weights. Both Motorace (race five) and Wine Barron (race seven) carried 60kg or more to victory and the latter did it in dominant fashion. Wine Barron had only won the two races from 20 starts leading into Saturday's four-length romp but he's now taken out two of his last three. Gemma Stapleton, stable representative of the Hickmott stable, was rapt with the way Wine Barron relaxed under jockey Todd Pannell given he can be a horse that does a bit wrong in his races. 'It's just great to see him put himself into the race and relax under Todd (Pannell),' Stapleton said. 'He ran his own race today so it's good to see him back in form. 'He seems to run into bad luck or things don't go his own way so it was good to see Todd take that out of the equation and lead. 'I'd say he's not the easiest horse to handle but he's really starting to put it together.' Speaking of Pannell, he too left Gawler with a double after taking out the final leg of the quaddie with Nurys. Wine Barron kicks clear in a dominant front-running ride to bounce back emphatically into the winner's circle 😤 @mhbloodstock pick up a double at Gawler ✌ï¸� â€' (@Racing) July 5, 2025 Pannell had rode Wine Barron on seven occasions without a win leading into Saturday and was glad to get the monkey off the back and reward connections. 'I was just trying to keep him on a long rein because he can be quite strong sometimes as well so I let him get comfortable and he responded well,' Pannell said. 'It's been a while since he's put it all together but it's good to see him handle the conditions and he just didn't make a mistake throughout the race. 'They're fantastic staff at Hickmott Racing so a big credit to them.' Jockey Jacob Opperman also booted home a double across the nine race card with winning rides aboard Koratora (race one) and Bancoora (race eight). Bancoora was rated as the longer priced runner of the two, getting sent out at double figures but he won like an odds on favourite. 'I was really confident coming to the corner,' Opperman said. 'He's still quite green but that was really good for his confidence. 'When I gave him the gap he worked through it nicely and I think this will be great for him going forward.'
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Super Netball round 13 results: Sunshine Coast Lightning defeat NSW Swifts 71-70
Sunshine Coast Lightning have overcome a dismal start and dogged NSW Swifts pressure to claim a 71-70 victory and keep their Super Netball season alive. Trailing with just seconds on the clock, captain Steph Fretwell sunk a long range shot to put her side in front and keep them in the hunt for a top-four finish, but they'll have to anxiously await the outcomes of other Round 13 games. 'The biggest thing for us is that we want to be brave and we want to have courage and that is something that this season we have shied away from. But that was a do-or-die moment for us and if it didn't come off and we had a one goal loss, at least we didn't walk off court and wonder what would've been,' Fretwell said. It's a tough state of affairs for the Swifts who, earlier in the season, looked unbeatable but have shown chinks in their armour after dropping four of their last five games. Given the loss, they'll stay in second place on the ladder, and are unlikely to reclaim the minor premiership or home final. The lead changed throughout the match and the physicality amped up, such was the desperation by both teams for the win. Bodies were hitting the floor as both teams battled the nerves, the crowd and each other. In the end, it was Fretwell's cool head who nailed a supershot to secure the win. The Swifts skipped out to an early lead with Sarah Klau wasting no time getting a positive stat on the board by collecting her first intercept at the two-minute mark. It was national teammate versus national teammate as she matched-up on Lighting's Cara Koenen, who made her return after spending two weeks resting a foot strain. Koenen eventually got the wood over Klau, taking MVP honours along the way, as she nailed 48 from 57 including one super shot. With Lightning's Courtney Bruce out due to a leg injury, the pressure was on young gun Ash Ervin to contain the Swifts' formidable goal shooter, Grace Nweke, who finished the match with 58 from 65 at 89 per cent but was shooting as low as 63 per cent at one point in the game. The Swifts were forced to bench captain Paige Hadley at halftime due to load management. One of the in form midcourters of the competition, Hadley was spotted wearing a moon boot at the airport last week and with the team guaranteed a finals spot, they didn't want to risk a more permanent injury by allowing her to play increased minutes too early. Post match, Hadley said that had she been on court in those final 30 seconds, she would have encouraged her team to play around the ball a bit more before taking a shot. 'We will have to go back and look at it. Swifts of old used to hold the ball for longer [than 30 seconds] at times. We will have to go back and have a look at it. But I think we just weren't on the same page and we were thinking more about getting the goal in and then applying pressure on defence,' Swifts goal attack Helen Housby said. Goal attack Helen Housby started the match well but as she has done over the last few rounds faded away as the match, and physicality, wore on. Housby was not the only one coping knocks with the umpires ordering both sides to tidy up and, at one point, telling Lightnings' wing defence Mahalia Cassidy and Swifts wing attack Grace Whyte, to 'knock it off' as they got caught up in overly physical play. A flying Lambden has been spotted at KRA ✈ï¸� Watch every game live on Kayo Sports, Foxtel and Binge. — Suncorp Super Netball (@SuperNetball) July 5, 2025 DIAMONDS DILEMMA The Diamonds squad is expected to be announced within the next two weeks. Out of this game, it is safe to say that at least five players will get another call-up with a further two (at least) likely on the invite list. The timing of Teigan O'Shannassy's lower back injury — which kept her out of today's match — could not be worse with many predicting she would receive her maiden invite. She will be hoping that consistent form, and existing connection with Diamonds' Sarah Klau and Paige Hadley, is enough for selectors to take a chance on her.
The Australian
2 hours ago
- The Australian
Australian wunderkind Oliver Peake on his Aus A debut against Sri Lanka
It was a subtle yet ominous warning from the emerging star. Teenager Oliver Peake hit 55no from just 38 balls on his Australian A debut on Friday in the first of five matches against Sri Lanka in the Northern Territory. The left-hander walked to the middle with 10 overs left and put on a 100-run stand with Test hopeful Nathan McSweeney. Peake carved four fours and one towering six in his 38-ball stay but, worryingly for Sri Lanka, he said he was far from his best for the first half of his innings. 'It was pretty cool to bat with Nathan McSweeney, obviously six months ago he was opening the batting for Australia,' Peake said. 'It's pretty cool to rub shoulders with him and spend some time out in the middle. 'He definitely guided me through my first 20 balls really well, I felt like I wasn't really hitting them too well and struggling to get it away. 'He just reminded me it's a big ground, run really hard and we just started to get the momentum back in our favour that way.' Ollie Peake made two hundreds for the Australian under-19 team against India. Picture: Oliver Peake Instagram. Peake, who toured with Australia in Sri Lanka earlier this year, also hit a half century on Sheffield Shield debut for Victoria in March. He said he took some time to adapt to the speed of the Sri Lankan spinners and the length of the seamers. 'The wicket had enough in it for the bowlers but as you can see a lot of runs scored as well,' he said. 'Their spinners were pretty fast through the air and didn't get too much bounce, that was a bit new and different to how Australians typically bowl. 'Their pace bowlers were trying to hit a lot of Yorkers which was quite new to me as well playing List A first class cricket, my first game. 'Hopefully I can continue on with some runs but it was good to help out at the end and cool to bat with 'Buddha' (McSweeney).' Tyler Lewis Sports reporter Tyler Lewis is a sports reporter based in Melbourne's south east. @tmlew_ Tyler Lewis
