Dr Drill beats Phaistos to win Scone Cup

NSW-based South African jockey Keagan Latham has steered import Dr Drill to a thrilling win in the Listed Scone Cup.

Sent out a $10 chance in Friday’s 1600m feature at Scone in the NSW Hunter Valley, Dr Drill enjoyed a nice run just off the lead before he sprinted to the front inside the final 100m.

In a busy finish, Dr Drill held off Phaistos ($3.90) who made a late charge out wide only to be denied by a short neck while Sambro was another head away third.

It was the first Australian stakes victory for the well-travelled Latham who has ridden 65 winners in NSW this season, mostly on provincial and country tracks.

For Dr Drill, it was the import’s seventh win from 23 career starts, five of those wins being in Australia from 14 outings since joining the stables of co-trainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace.

“We were quite confident this would be his sort of race,” Maher and Eustace’s Sydney stable representative Annabel Neasham told Sky Thoroughbred Central.

“It was a beautiful ride from Keagan.

“I said to him, ‘just really cuddle him’. I think last start we just rode him a bit wrong and over 1400 metres it just had him at his top the whole way.

“We knew out to the mile he would travel much better and it was a great ride.

“He’s got a really good turn of foot.

“He was a mile-and-a-half horse back in Europe but Ciaron does a great job with these European horses in getting a bit of speed into their legs, and he’s produced over all sorts of trips now.”

Dr Drill also won the Cranbourne Cup (2025m) at Listed level last spring.