By GARRY HOWE
FORMER Cranbourne jockey Craig Williams’s misfortune was his international colleague Brett Prebbles fortune at the big Inglis Pinker Pinker Plate meeting at Cranbourne on Friday night.
Williams, the son of local trainer Alan Williams and grandson of training legend Tommy Harrison, was booked to ride the smart Danny O’Brien trained mare Keep De Rose.
However, Williams had to serve a suspension for a ride on Turnbull Stakes day at Flemington and handed the ride to Prebble, who spends most of his time these days riding overseas.
“I would like to thank Craig Williams,” Prebble said at the presentation.
“His misfortune is my fortune.”
Keep Da Rose has now had four wins and three placings from her eight starts and looks to have a bright future.
“She’s a nice, honest horse,” Prebble said.
“She can do it either way – go forward or settle back in her races.”
The Pinker Pinker Plate is raced in honour of the Greg Eurell-trained 2011 Cox Plate winner, who was tragically cut down in her prime in April last year, dying after a reaction to medication.
She was raced by members of the Gazdowicz and Kirby families who travelled down from Geelong to be part of the presentation ceremony.
The Inglis Pinker Pinker Plate meeting kicks off the big Browns Sawdust and Shavings Night Racing Series at Cranbourne, which continues this Friday night with another big eight races card, kicking off at 6.45pm.
