Wodonga Racing Tips for September 15 – Hayes stable set for a couple of winners at Wodonga

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

It was an improved performance by Fierce Ruby at start number three and the Team Hayes mare can register her first career win when she steps out in the opener at Wodonga. After battling at her first two career starts, which came on synthetic surfaces, the four-year-old tackled the turf for the first time at Wangaratta on August 23 and narrowly missed out behind Kokonda as the runner-up. She settled handy and looked the winner before being run down late by Kokonda, who has since picked up another win, while the fifth-placegetter from Wangaratta also won last weekend. Fierce Ruby comes in with the best last-start benchmark figures of any runner and has scope for further improvement, while she draws to enjoy the favours from barrier 2.

Hell’s Diamond shapes as an interesting contender in Race 4. Another from the Hayes stable, the four-year-old has had just the one career start, recording a convincing win in Maiden grade at Kilmore back in March over 1207m. She was slowly away that day before negotiating traffic in the straight and winning with ease. The daughter of Hellbent comes into this first-up off a long break and steps up in grade, but comes from a respected stable and was solid in a recent trial win at Flemington. Market moves just prior to the jump will be key here and, with any support, she should be hard to beat from barrier 3.

Queen Of Tuscany shapes as an each-way player in Race 6. The seven-year-old will have to do it the hard way from the wide barrier but was an improver at her most recent start when closing off with the fastest last 200m to place third behind Octane Reign on the Pakenham Synthetic on August 24. That was her best performance since some strong efforts in harder company than this last year, when taking out a Benchmark 64 before narrowly going down in BM70 company after that. With any luck finding a spot with cover and not too far back in the field early on, she can challenge them late in the piece.