Telfer three-year-olds top picks at Addington and Auckland

By Michael Guerin

Even a record-setting trainer like Steve Telfer rarely goes into race meetings as confident as he is with two of his star three-year-old pacers over the next two days.

Telfer and sister Amanda set a new New Zealand record for training wins in a season in December and start rolling out their big names for 2026 over coming weeks, two of them at Addington tonight and one at Alexandra Park tomorrow night.

Sonofamistery returns in Race 4 at the rare Thursday night Addington meeting and everything about him suggests the punters using him as the multi anchor should have few concerns.

“He is a really good horse and we’d be surprised if he didn’t win,” says Steve Telfer.

“He has great speed and while he hasn’t raced since the beginning of last month he beat Arafura at the trials two weeks ago.

“They were out for a proper run that day so Tim [Williams, driver] just sat behind her and only let him go the last 60m and he still picked her up.

“He gets into a nice grade tonight and he should win and then make his way up north for the good three-year-old races at Alexandra Park.”

The stable have another handy three-year-old who will start a warm favourite ($1.85) tonight in Get Seaside Lucky in Race 7, in which he has drawn the ace.

“He was well beaten in the Harness Million last start but before that had some big placings behind some good horses.”

That included sitting parked to finish second to subsequent Sires’ Stakes Final winner Freeze Frame in a Timaru juvenile race while Get Seaside Lucky has also been placed behind Incentivise, Stumbling In and even finished fourth to Jumal.

So falling back into maiden grade he too should be winning even though Samtana (No.2) has hinted as having some ability for Team Dunn.

The Telfers also have one of our best juveniles from last season in Allamericanplayer returning at Alexandra Park tomorrow night where he is also red hot albeit in a stronger race.

He meets the very in-form Johnny Lincoln in their Frocks At The Trots Metro Heat and even though Allamericanplayer has the worst of the draws Telfer is confident.

“He was top class last season and while the team down south love Sonofamistery when we got to the best races last season this was the horse who stood up.

“So I think he can win even from his wide draw and then he will also head to some of those good three-year-old races.”