Nine heats of the Group 1 Wheeler Kennels Golden Easter Egg will be run on Saturday night at Wentworth Park. All the action kicks off at 7:43pm, here’s a few thoughts and our tips for each of the preliminaries:
Dewana Star (2) trialled here on March 12 and went 29.33 with a first section of 5.32. Yep, you read that right…5.32. If he reproduces those splits, he’s a moral. Nothing in this field has that sort of early pace and Dewana Star has since contested a hot Shepparton Cup series where he won a heat in great fashion and was luckless in the final. Taw Major (1) might be in career best form after running a 29.53 Wenty Park PB two weeks ago and securing three wins in his last four starts at headquarters. Made the Bulli Cup final recently and was a MDC Consolation finalist in October. She’s Fearless (7) is a daughter of former Egg winner, She’s A Pearl. She’s just a level or two below the best sprinters in NSW right now but has a decent winning strike rate with 11 wins in 22 starts.
He’s A Pearl (2) is the big winner after My Monroe scratched from Box 1. He wants to use a bit of the track so now he’s got more room to move. Probably sits behind My Boy Bingo or Off The Chart and gets dragged into race. Was luckless in the Richmond Derby final and then won the Temora Cup well. His recent Wenty Park wins of 29.22 and 29.30 are ominous. Taw Galaxy (4) is a talent for Andrew Rowe. He won last year’s Goulburn Cup, ran fourth in the Paul Wheeler final and third in the Gosford Cup. Will be strong to the line and just needs some luck through the first bend to contend. My Boy Bingo (3) is no stranger to Wenty Park after making the MDC final last year and running fourth in The Collerson in December. Knocked off Cumbria Jack in the semi-final which is no mean feat but does reent 600m campaign help or hinder?
King Of Gods (4) just didn’t get into the New Sensation final and was completely outpaced early by Consigliere on his outside. He probably can’t win running a 5.60 first section but a repeat of his heats run (5.47) would be a different story. He’s a Group 1 National Derby placegetter and has made a few feature finals without winning a big one yet. Summer Quinn (1) won over 450m at Grafton last start in what seems like a strange bit of placement but it was probably a look ahead of the Grafton Cup in a few months. The time was only OK but she finally gets her box at Wenty Park. In five starts from Box 1, she’s had three wins and two minors and if she can find that 5.40 first section she’s capable of, she could win. Cumbria Benny (2) is a full brother to Cumbria Jack and a recent Temora Cup placegetter. Had a run at Wenty Park last week where he was wide early and off the track a long way but he didn’t finish off well at all. That was his first 500 in a month so maybe he needed the run? And
Eriza Sparkles (2) is thefastest bitch ever at Wenty Park (29.17). Great warm up win last week in 29.24 and has been arguably the most consistent runner in the country in the last six months. Made feature finals at Temora, Richmond and Bulli this year without winning but that came on the back of a stellar 2025 campaign. Nine starts at Wenty for five wins and three minors and has never missed a drum from Box 2. Secret Bandit (1) has had two runs at Wenty Park in the last two months and both were wins in 29.49 and 29.24. Can fly early so does that help of hinder Eriza Sparkles undone? Gold Force (3) cameso close to snatching the Shepparton Cup last start and wins with one more stride. He’s clearly a flying machine but he’s a better U turn dog in my opinion. At 39kg, he needs room to move and wind up and will want to get outside dogs.
Paw Oswald (2) is one of my favourites and for good reason. National Derby winner here last year which feels like forever a go but later in 2025 he went within a whisker of making the MDC and Melbourne Cup finals. Also ran second at Wenty Park in the Paul Wheeler heats and made the Australian Cup final. Loves inside draws and has early pace. Zipping Kayli (4) is an emerging star. Ran second in the Robert Smith Memorial maiden and the winner, Blue Storm, has been flying down in Melbourne. She also ran second to Consigliere in the New Sensation and she’s strong for a young greyhound. Barefoot Zulu (1) has been an interesting watch since bursting onto the scene in the big Grafton Maiden 18 months ago. He promised so much at the time but he’s had a few injuries and been a bit of an ‘almost’ dog for Dave Geall. Any dog that goes 28.94 at Sandown has elite ability though and he ran second in The Shootout in November.
Consigliere (2) gets a box to do some real damage here and his last few runs have been superb. He won the Group 3 New Sensation after burning to the front from the wide draw and finished third in the Australian cup before that…the penny seems to have dropped. He’s also jumping well now (5.39 in the heats and 5.45 in the final) which is scary for his opponents. Foreign Capital (4) has been racing so consistently and his last three runs at Wenty Park have all been 29.53 or quicker (beaten by Eriza Sparkles. Cumbria jack and Jungle Johnny). He also ran second to Cumbria Jack in the Richmond Derby and third to Gold Force in the Bulli Cup before that. Often finds one better. Accredited (1) is big talent for Ned Mcdonald who won the Hume Cup over 600m in November. He was also a Gold Bullion finalist in January but hasn’t raced since. He did trial reasonably well at the track last week though and loves the red (5:3-2-0 in Box 1 starts).
Cumbria Jack (2) is the favourite for the series and hits the Egg in great form following three straight wins. The Richmond Derby triumph was scintillating and he’s perfectly placed to storm his way into the semi-finals. He gets a nice low draw in Box 2 and should shoot to the front and storm away. ‘Jack’ hasn’t missed the quinella in five starts at Wenty and he’s the former track record holder (29.04). Black Myth Wave (4) normally needs to lead to win but even though I can’t see that happening, he’s still well placed to run well. Won the Group 2 Maitland Cup in December after flying out and also finished second to Gold Force in the Bulli Cup. Could tag onto Cumbria Jack and be the best of the rest. If Paw Zuri (3) can run fourth in a Melbourne Cup final, she’s a red hot chance to advance from a race like this. Had a look at the track in the Paul Wheeler heats in December but not much went right so prepared to give her another chance.
Slick Splits (4) is a classy addition to the series. He comes up for his first crack at NSW riches after claiming a couple of Group 1 races in Victoria. He beat Eriza Sparkles, Mallee Beauty, Jungle Johnny, Sooty Keeping and Flying Zulu to win the Topgun last year and has basically been in group races ever since. Ran second in the recent Australian Cup and I think the draw is fine. Middle lanes are OK at Wenty Park if you have decent speed so I like him in this field. Back Tomorrow (1) is almost a carbon copy of her half-sister Gets Late Early. She’ll run a 5.45 first section nearly every time and eve though she doesn’t have a 29.2 effort in her, she’s a constant 29.4 or 29.5 threat. Ritza Tears (8) is a National Derby winner who was a complete forgive last week in the New Sensation. Got chopped off by Entertainer early and then squeezed out on the first turn. Best to ignore that effort because he’s a better dog than that.
Cleo’s Star (3) ran seventh in the Australian Cup final but the semi-final win was superb. She ran 29.72 at The Meadows to lead all the way and beat home Mepunga Reward, Dashing Slay, Giacomo, Tim Zoo and Slick Badger. This heat has nowhere near the depth of that race so if she can lead and handle Wenty Park, she can win. Taormina (6) is such an interesting runner. At her best, she’d fire to the front and run them into the ground…but she’s been hard to catch this year. She’s still a consistent beginner (all of her first sections have been between 5.40 and 5.50 in the last four months of racing) but she hasn’t been finishing off as well. Zig Zag Man (8) could do anything. He withdrew from the Country Classic at Dubbo but if he’s OK, he finds a small field and the early pace influences will spread them out for him to find a gap or two. Box 8 isn’t the worst spot for him and he will be storming home late…but does he have the zip in his legs after staying and middle distance campaigns?
Tips | 3, 6, 8, 1
The top three from each heat, as well as the five fastest fourths, will advance to the semi-finals on April 4.
The $300,000-to-the-winner final will be held on April 11 at Wentworth Park.
