Little Lily - a blooming talent

The Christmas Eve meeting at Cambridge was a memorable one for Kumeu trainer, Sheryl Wigg, when she produced two-year-old Lazarus filly, Little Lily, to win on debut.

Competing against a good field of two-year-old fillies, Little Lily settled well back in the field early for driver Andre Poutama before moving into the running line, three back position.

With 400m to go she was launched three wide and showed impressive speed to loop the field, knuckling down over the final 200m and holding off challenges to win comfortably in the end by one and a quarter lengths going away.

It was a dominant win, and showed a professional attitude and manners from the debutante.

When initially nominating for the race however, Wigg was just thinking that it would be a nice hit out for the filly as she had been light on pre-race hit outs.

“I had only given her one trial, and I knew we were getting on a bit in the season. So I thought we’d just use her first race as a trial in itself because we were running out of two-year-old races.”

“So she did surprise me to a degree, and man did she show a bit of lick when she went around them. But that’s just her really, she does everything right and she just wants to be a racehorse.”

“She’s pulled up well, she thinks she’s the Queen around here,” laughed Wigg.

Owned by Janine Brown, Little Lily was purchased from the weanling sales and has been under Wigg’s care and guidance ever since.

She is out of a Western Ideal mare, Western Willow, an unraced daughter of the brilliant race mare, One Dream (23 starts, 18 wins, $899,487).

From the early stages of her breaking and preparation she has given the impression that she had ability.

“Tate Hopkins has done a lot of work with her for me, and he has always rated her highly. He’s always boasted about how clean gaited she is and she had always shown ability at home even from an early stage,” Wigg said.

“She doesn’t even need any boots at all, I just put them on for protection really but she is beautifully gaited and very clean.”

But it was an early spell this season that really brought out the best in Little Lily.

“I gave her a couple of trials as an early two-year-old, but she needed the benefit of a bit of strengthening up. So, I turned her out, and it’s been the best thing for her actually,” Wigg said.

“She came back a different horse after the spell, and she just keeps stepping up.”

Little Lily will now compete against both sexes when she starts in the $25,000 Breckon Farms Juvenile Classic at Alexandra Park on New Year’s Eve.

“She’s in against the boys as well and it will be a test, but I don’t think she’ll be too far away. She’s beaten a lot of them already,” said Wigg.

“She should only be improved for that run under her belt. She has come through her race a box of birds.”

Given a lack of three-year-old race opportunities in the north for her in the immediate future, Little Lily may spell after this week briefly before returning the to track.

Regardless of the result on Wednesday, Wigg is just pleased that Little Lily is part of her team.

“She’s just a lovely horse to have around. She’s mellow but she just loves being a racehorse and loves what she’s doing,” Wigg said.

“I put all the people that are learning to drive on her around here. She has the loveliest nature and is just beautiful to do anything with.”

The Christmas Eve race saw a Lazarus quinella across the line, with early pacemaker Arose finishing second. But she was later relegated to fourth after a mishap in the run home.

Little Lily - 2yo filly by Lazarus Wins on Debut