Balle quartet on song

By Joshua Smith, Harness News Desk

Derek Balle is looking forward to heading to Alexandra Park on Friday night where he will line-up a quartet of runners.

His charge will be led by three-year-old trotter Chicago H who will start from behind the 30m tape in the Lone Star Alexandra Park Handicap Trot (2200m).

Balle said Chicago H has taken plenty of time to mature, but he believes the colt is now starting to show his ability.

“He is improving and is trotting more solidly,” Balle said.

“He has been fractionally disappointing. He has just taken a wee while to get organised.

“Love Yous probably don’t come as early as you would like them to but at the moment he is heading in the right direction.

“A race with maidens off the front is a drop in grade for him so he is going to be hard to beat.”

Impeccably bred, Chicago H is the son of Champion French stallion Love You and Balle’s former Group One-winning mare Martina H.

Later on the card, Balle will have a two-pronged attack in the McMillan Equine Feeds Handicap Trot (2200m) with MM Sunshine and Aardiebythehill.

MM Sunshine heads into the race off the back of a last start win at Cambridge Raceway while Aardiebythehill placed at Alexandra Park last week following a win at the Auckland track earlier this month.

“They are both trotting well,” Balle said.

“It’s a bit of a rise in grade for MM Sunshine. At this stage she has been more comfortable left-handed but we are going to give her a show right-handed.

“She is normally pretty good, she is pretty solid so we will give her her shot and if she gets around in one piece I will be happy.

“Aardiebythehill has been good. He was a little bit unlucky last start, he just got held up. Tony (Herlihy, driver) thought he would have been a lot closer if he got more of a drag up into it. He is a nice horse.”

Balle’s quartet will be rounded out by Cotton Socks in the Bell Scaffolding Mobile Pace (2200m).

“She has been improving and getting a bit stronger,” Balle said.

“It’s her first go right-handed for a while, but it is probably not that much difference of class of horse that she has been facing at Cambridge.

“If she is handy enough she will give a good account of herself.”