Sam Spratt will continue her unbeaten association with Shees Flawless in Queensland on Monday.
She will partner the speedy New Zealand-owned filly when she makes her Australian debut in a 1200 metre handicap at the Sunshine Coast.
Shees Flawless is now prepared on the Sunshine Coast track by expatriate Kiwi trainer Paul Jenkins. She began her two-year-old career with Richard Collett and then training partner Gareth McRae before she joined Roger James’ Cambridge yard.
In the spring, the chestnut was placed in the Gr.3 Gold Trail Stakes before a successful autumn campaign that opened with an easy win at Te Rapa under Spratt.They then bolted away with an age group event at Awapuni and completed a hat-trick with a comprehensive defeat of the black type winners Tavy and Passing Shot in the Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes.
A cut heel prevented Shees Flawless from making her first Queensland appearance for James and she was subsequently transferred to Jenkins.The three-year-old has drawn a wide gate on Monday, but Spratt isn’t overly concerned.
“She’s pretty slick, although she doesn’t have to lead,” she said. “As long as she’s happy and in her rhythm she’s fine.”Shees Flawless is raced by a syndicate that includes her co-breeder and part-owner Peter Walker, who shared in the ownership of the filly’s Group One-winning sire Fully Fledged.