Echuca Racing Tips for August 30 – Midnight Glow drops sharply in grade and should be too good in Race 5.

Here are our best bets from the meeting, which also feature in our daily selections.

Happy to be with Portland Rose in Race 2. The Robbie Griffiths-trained filly has had just one career start and failed when taking on the best of her age group in the Blue Diamond Prelude (1100m), finishing well back behind Streisand, who went on to win the Blue Diamond (1200m) before finishing runner-up in the Golden Slipper. Portland Rose overraced in the Prelude before fading, but her trial form has been rock solid and this is obviously a much easier assignment. She gets a good chance to show what she is capable of.

Midnight Glow can get the job done in Race 5. The seven-year-old drops down in distance from slightly longer trips and form over the 1600m has been solid throughout his career with a win and a runner-up as well as some competitive efforts in much harder company than this. He has had two runs off a 10-week freshen up and drops sharply in grade after a last start 5th over the 1800m at Sandown on July 29, going 1.2 lengths slower than standard benchmark, which is more than seven lengths better than the next best last start figures of any runner. He rises in weight but does have a sizeable class edge and Craig Newitt can stalk them with cover in the small field. He strikes at 19% for the stable, providing a 64% profit on invesestment.