First starter Exceed And Exalt earned a Pago Pago Stakes start when he narrowly denied Houston Benefactor from scoring a miraculous victory at Canterbury on Wednesday.Exceed And Exalt got through late on the inside to win the Grand Pavilion Handicap (1200m) in a photo-finish, but the performance of Houston Benefactor to almost get up left many onlookers stunned.Houston Benefactor reared up as the barriers opened and trailed the entire field by about six lengths before tacking on at the 500-metre

First starter Exceed And Exalt earned a Pago Pago Stakes start when he narrowly denied Houston Benefactor from scoring a miraculous victory at Canterbury on Wednesday.

Exceed And Exalt got through late on the inside to win the Grand Pavilion Handicap (1200m) in a photo-finish, but the performance of Houston Benefactor to almost get up left many onlookers stunned.

Houston Benefactor reared up as the barriers opened and trailed the entire field by about six lengths before tacking on at the 500-metre mark.

Tim Clark rode the Anthony Cummings-trained filly for luck and the daughter of Encosta De Lago sprinted between runners to actually hit the lead inside the final 100m.

In the end, the effort told and apprentice Nathan Berry urged the Guy Walter-trained Exceed And Exalt along in the final stages and won the race in a head-bobbing finish.

Cummings was left to ponder what might have been and the filly was ordered to trial to stewards' satisfaction before she can return to the races.

"I thought watching it that we had actually won, but we didn't," Cummings said.

"I don't understand what's going on with her. She's a very nice horse, we've just got to work a few things out at the barriers and we'll be fine."

Despite the luckless performance of the runner-up, Walter was delighted with Exceed And Exalt and will give the youngster his chance to prove his worth in stakes company a week before the Golden Slipper.

"I'm going to run him in the Pago Pago Stakes at Rosehill in two and a half weeks," Walter said.

"He's still in the Slipper but the Sires' Produce Stakes is probably more likely."

Walter trained Exceed And Exalt's mother Laetitia and the colt was purchased as a yearling with the intention of him being an early two-year-old.

"But he's just taken a while," Walter said.

"I put blinkers on him in his most recent trial and that improved him greatly. I decided to use them again today, I thought it was a beautiful ride and an outstanding performance."

Corey Brown rode at the first half of Wednesday's meeting but was then stood down after the fifth race and will also miss Thursday's Hawkesbury meeting.

The top jockey was injured in a barrier trial mishap at Randwick on Friday and missed last Saturday's Chipping Norton Stakes meeting.

"He has right shoulder and chest soreness, just bruising from the incident on Friday," chief steward Ray Murrihy said.

"He won't ride tomorrow and we've told him he'll have to get his own doctor to clear him before Saturday."

Brown is booked to ride 2009 Melbourne Cup winner Shocking in Saturday's Group One Australian Cup at Flemington.