Dame Giselle put her hand up for next year’s $3.5 million Golden Slipper Stakes with a powerhouse performance to win the 2019 Golden Gift for Team Snowden on Saturday.

Dame Giselle was eye-catching beating home the boys in the 2019 Golden Gift results for Team Snowden. Photo: Steve Hart.

Peter & Paul Snowden saddled-up four in the $1 million Golden Gift (1100m) at Rosehill Gardens this spring and were successful with an improved second-up performance from I Am Invincible filly Dame Giselle.

Second to See You Soon on debut when narrowly beaten in Randwick’s $125,000 Kirkham Plate (1000m), with the winkers on in the Golden Gift the progressive bay was able to turn the tables on her last start conqueror.

“She did a great job, you can’t beat race experience and that’s what she lacked the other day. I thought she would improve off that,” co-trainer Peter Snowden said of Dame Giselle’s debut run. 

“We’ve always liked her from day one. From the very first time she showed something and always had that good demeanour which I love about a two-year-old. She was athletic and a great mover, the staff picked her out and the riders picked her out, she gave us a good feel early and I thought she was stiff not to win first-up so it’s good to get this result.”

In his biggest payday to date, jockey Andrew Adkins continued his association on Dame Giselle giving the up-and-comer a beautifully timed ride in the two-years-old showdown.

“It felt fantastic. What a little filly she is. She put the writing on the wall last start, narrowly getting beaten, and she put up a great effort doing that. Coming here today I was full of confidence, I couldn’t believe the price she went up,” Adkins said.   

In the early stages it was the Snowden-trained son of Criterion Blaze A Trail and the Bjorn Baker-trained Malkovich from outside barriers leading the field around.

Blaze A Trail was the sole leader on the straight, but the colt was no match for his fast-finishing stablemate Dame Giselle ($13) who Adkins took to the outside late to get up in the nick of time and fly home.

Drawing away over the closing stages, on the line the filly had nearly four lengths to spare over the Jean Dubois-trained See You Soon ($7) who came quickly and snared second from the frontrunner Blaze A Trail ($4.40) stopping an all-Snowden quinella.

“What a training performance. Peter and Paul had her primed. When I pulled her up it was like she hadn’t even been around. To have a two-year-old that fit, that ready to go, and that on the ball. What a thrill,” Adkins added.

The Snowden stable will now be looking ahead to next autumn with their current crop of juveniles, the long-term target behind the Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes in March.

“She can have a well earned rest now, poke her way back and only run in the races we need to. She might only need one run leading into the Slipper, we’ll let the dust settle and that decision will be made later on,” Snowden said.

Snowden was also impressed by the run from Blaze A Trail, the first two-year-old starter for his sire.

“Very brave, he probably over raced a bit early. I’m glad he ran third because the prizemoney is going to make sure he gets into the right races. You’ll be hearing more of him for sure. He’s only going to get better and he will improve a lot,” he said. 

The Golden Gift results saw Dame Giselle firm into $21 in the pre-field 2020 Golden Slipper odds at Ladbrokes.com.au – available here – with Adkins keen to keep the ride on the filly in the big one next year. 

“I hope I can book myself, certainly put my name in there for sure. Last 10 months has been pretty torturous, the fall set me back a long way. It was a lot of preparation to get me back to the races and to be able to receive rides like this I have had to work pretty hard. I do a lot of work for Peter and Paul and for them to be able to return the favour and give me a ride in a million dollar race, and to get the job done, I am very thrilled and very chuffed,” he said. 

2019 Golden Gift Results & Finishing Order