John O’Shea, still in the middle of his first week as head-trainer at Darley, says he’s still coming to terms with the actual magnitude of the operation.
“To be honest I’m still getting my head around just how big it is,” O’Shea told Racing Network today.
He said Sessions, who worked well at Flemington this morning, would be his first starter in Adelaide.
“I’ve never had a runner at Morphettville and it seems we’ve had no luck with the draw either,” O’Shea said, referring to the barrier 16 allotted to Sessions.
Unfamiliar with the characteristics of the Morphettville track in winter, O’Shea said he would be paying particular attention to the weather in Adelaide heading towards the weekend, and the racing pattern, if any, of the track on Saturday.
He was intrigued to hear the false rail will be out three metres from the 1200-metres to the winning post, and in the true for the remainder of the course.
Last week the false rail was out eight metres from the 1200-metres to the 600 metres, then five metres for the remainder of the track.
Those rail movements could suggest hard up against the rail may be the place to be.
As O’Shea said, “time will tell”.