from RACING POST (www.racing.scmp.com)Trainer Sean Woods didn't mix words when he sent Johan Victoire out to give Diamond Knight a strong gallop at yesterday's Sha Tin barrier trials - and the gelding responded, leading throughout to win the second heat by four lengths in a time of 61.10 seconds. Despite the winner being given some serious fitness work, it was the David Hall-trained Merry Way who caught the eye as he cruised to an easy striding second with Brett Prebble in the saddle. Merry Way

from RACING POST (www.racing.scmp.com)

Trainer Sean Woods didn't mix words when he sent Johan Victoire out to give Diamond Knight a strong gallop at yesterday's Sha Tin barrier trials - and the gelding responded, leading throughout to win the second heat by four lengths in a time of 61.10 seconds. Despite the winner being given some serious fitness work, it was the David Hall-trained Merry Way who caught the eye as he cruised to an easy striding second with Brett Prebble in the saddle.

Merry Way moved strongly into the 1,050m trial on the all-weather track upon entering the straight and began cutting into the tiring leader's margin in the final furlong without a great deal of pressure.

One of the lowest rated horses in training, Magic Practitioner, who boasts the unenviable rating of 10, was ridden hard along the rails to finish a respectable fourth, six lengths behind the winner, who is rated at 78, and two behind Merry Way, who sits on the benchmark of 74.

Magic Practitioner's new trainer, Peter Ho Leung, may be considering taking a different tack with the Perugino four-year-old in the near future after his previous handler, Me Tsui Yu-sak, exhausted a host of gear changes in a bid to improve his results.

Magic Practitioner has yet to be tried under race conditions on the dirt, but this blow-out may convince his trainer to switch to this surface in a final effort to save the horse from an early retirement. Manfred Man Ka-Leung's Electronic Master appeased stewards and gained the all-clear to return to racing by finishing third after he was withdrawn at his latest start when he became fractious in the barriers.

Man also had Moonglow passed fit to return to action in the first heat, which was taken out by Berio, who completed his 1,050m assignment in a time of 61.39 seconds under the guidance of Douglas Whyte.