Prendergast outlines plans Kevin Prendergast could target the 1000 Guineas Trial at Leopardstown with Starbright after her encouraging return to action at the Curragh last weekend. The three-year-old daughter of Duke Of Marmalade was a winner as a juvenile and also ran with credit at the very highest level when fifth in the Moyglare Stud Stakes. She was beaten five lengths into third on her comeback in the Lodge Park Stud European Breeders Fund Park Express Stakes on Sunday and Prendergast was delighted to pick up some black type. He said: "She ran all right and she's a winner and Group Three placed now, which is good. "Hopefully she'll improve and we'll see where she goes next. "It's possible she'll go for the Guineas Trial in Leopardstown." Prendergast also unleashed a couple of smart-looking newcomers on the first day of the Irish Flat turf season. My Sapphire lined up in the opening two-year-old race of the campaign and ran a race full of promise to beat all bar impressive Jim Bolger-trained colt Saburo. "She ran very well. We were delighted with her," said Prendergast. "She didn't have a good draw and she's just a small filly, so the heavy ground wouldn't have been ideal, but she came home well. "We bred her ourselves, she's a first foal and she'd shown us a good bit, which is why we started her off last weekend. "The winner the other day looked smart and we'll just try to find a similar race for our filly and go from there." Previously unraced grey Silver Lightening was beaten just half a length into second in the three-year-old maiden later in the day. "He ran good race and just ran as though he needed it a bit," said Prendergast. "He was a bit green but he came home well and we'll just try to find a maiden of similar quality." Prendergast is hopeful La Collina can make her mark at the highest level again this season following a fine three-year-old campaign. A winner of the Group One Phoenix Stakes as a juvenile, La Collina failed to find the target during her Classic year, but four of her five starts were in Group One company. She signed off for the year with a close-up fourth in the Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket in late September and Prendergast is looking forward to seeing how she fares over a mile and a quarter in due course. The seven-furlong Big Bad Bob Gladness Stakes at the Curragh on April 7th is a potential starting point for the four-year-old. Prendergast said: "La Collina is in good shape. "We were going to start her off in the Stakes race at the Curragh last weekend, but the ground was so bad and I didn't want to bottom her on her first run back. "The Gladness is coming up, but we haven't got as far as making a definite plan with her. "I'm happy with her at home and you'd like to think she can improve a bit for going an extra couple of furlongs. She was coming home well on her last run last year in the Sun Chariot." The pick of Prendergast's Classic crop this time around could well be the Hamdan Al Maktoum-owned Mooqtar. The son of Invasor certainly looked the part when making a winning debut at Leopardstown in early September and is a 50/1 shot for the Qipco 2000 Guineas at Newmarket on May 4th. Prendergast said: "He's fine, but where he goes is dependant on the ground - he needs it quite fast, really. "He is in the 2000 Guineas and if it dries up a bit we'll have a think about what we do."
