Samantha to star for Ryan at Rosehill

Trainer Gerald Ryan is likely to have just one runner in the Listed Starlight Stakes at Rosehill from a possible three.

Group Three winner Diddums has developed a foot problem while the strength of the 20 nominations will rule Tango Rain out, leaving Samantha to fly the flag for the stable in Saturday’s Listed 1100m-sprint.

“Diddums walked out lame this morning and has a pulse in her foot,” Ryan said.

“We’ll treat it and find something else for her in a couple of weeks.

“Tango Rain won’t run unless it is wet. It has come up as a pretty strong race.

“All is fine with Samantha so she will run.”

The mare won the Listed Fireball Stakes in March and returned to winning form in the $100,000 Choisir Handicap (1100m) at Randwick on November 7 at her third start of this campaign.

Samantha races in the same orange and brown colours of George Altomonte’s Corumbene Stud as her stablemate Menari who has undergone a wind operation since his third in the Group One Golden Rose in September.

Ryan said the colt was another two weeks away from beginning his build-up to an autumn sprint campaign.

Dothraki (106) and The Monstar (104) are the highest-rated of the Starlight Stakes entries.

Big Money, Egyptian Symbol, Palazzo Pubblico and Quatronic have also been nominated for the Group Three George Moore Stakes (1200m) at Doomben.

Ryan will have Red Excitement in the Group Three Festival Stakes (1500m) at Rosehill and also plans to run two-year-old Nuke. who ran third on debut at Gosford on Saturday, in the 1100m-race for juveniles.

“There’s nothing else for him for three weeks,” Ryan said.

“He’s a bit of a lad and a tough kid so he will run.”