Bouncing back? Sakae Kunieda, the trainer of top Japanese stayer Meiner Kitz (a Melbourne Cup prospect) is apparently keen to 'raid' the spring with his Aussie-bred 3YO Break A Theory. The target will be the 2500m Victoria Derby. Break A Theory was bred and sold in Australia for $50,000 at the Melbourne Premier yearling sale to Shigeyuki Okada's Big Red Farm on the Japanese island of Hokkaido.

Nice old bungle to end the season...The field for Sat's Bletchingly Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield has been redrawn. The Mark Young-trained Secret Flyer has been added to the field after an administration error.

Latest Bletchingly betting market:

10. Velocitea 3.40
08. Shoot Out 4.00
09. Tollesprit 7.00
07. Keano 9.00
03. Royal Ida 11.00
04. Stanzout 11.00
11. Elumino 11.00
01. Mr Baritone 13.00
05. Secret Flyer 21.00
02. Douro Valley 81.00
06. Apprehend 101.00
www.betstar.com.au

6-03.07 BLETCHINGLY STAKES (1200 METRES)
Of $125000 and $750 trophy. 1st $75000 and trophy of $750, 2nd $22500, 3rd $11250, 4th $5625, 5th $3125, 6th $2500, 7th $2500, 8th $2500.
Standard Weight for Age. (GROUP 3).
No Allowances for apprentices. Field Limit: 16 + 4 EM
No Horse Trainer Jockey Barrier Weight Penalty Handicapper
Rating
1 MR BARITONE (NZ) Michael Moroney Mark Zahra 8 58.5 104
2 DOURO VALLEY Peter Morgan James Winks 9 58.5 106
3 ROYAL IDA Luke Oliver Brad Rawiller 10 58.5 105
4 STANZOUT Colin Davies Craig Williams 7 58.5 101
5 SECRET FLYER Mark Young Logan McGill 5 58.5 100
6 APPREHEND Tony Vasil Kelvin Sanderson 11 58.5 96
7 KEANO (NZ) Danny O'Brien Nicholas Hall 4 58.5 96
8 SHOOT OUT John Wallace Stathi Katsidis 1 58 112
9 TOLLESPRIT Shane Fliedner Steven Arnold 3 58 94
10 VELOCITEA (NZ) Mick Price Craig Newitt 6 56.5 106
11 ELUMINO Peter G Moody Luke Nolen 2 56.5 96

Good news, the Japanese are coming...News today that the Federal Government has removed the final obstacle for Japanese horses to travel to Australia to compete at the Melbourne spring carnival. Japanese horses have been banned from racing in Australia since an equine influenza outbreak hit both countries in 2007. Reports say the Australian Quarantine Inspection Service has approved two pre-export quarantine facilities in Tokyo and Nakayama. Jaguar Mail and Meiner Kitz are 2 Japanese stayers who are earmarked for the Melbourne Cup. Craig Williams will ride Jaguar Mail.

Bit of a smell here...Glen Boss might NOT be riding Faint Perfume in all her spring starts. Bossy reckons he's got the spring gig but connections say he's only engaged for the Caulfield Cup. They say Michael Rodd will have first pick for FP's other races.

Great to see popular Peter Snowden leading the national winners' tally. He's secured the trainers' premiership with 227.5 winners. PS says: 'It has been an unbelievable effort from a lot of good people right through the whole operation...When you're surrounded by good people good things happen.' Snowden is eight wins clear in the Sydney premiership from Chris Waller, who scored at Canterbury with Shawnee Girl and Pay And Play before the final three races were abandoned. Snowden has 97 winners and is desperate to hit the 100 mark by the end of the season on Saturday. This gives him 2 meetings, assuming Warwick Farm is not wiped out by rain on Friday.

The right spirit...The news is encouraging for the return to racing of Toowoomba star Spirit Of Boom. He's currently in Sydney for a double-banger mission - Sat week's Grp 3 San Domenico Stakes (1000m) at Randwick and then the Grp 3 Up And Coming Stakes (1200m) at Warwick Farm on Aug 21. Trainer Tony Gollan's long-range target is the Magic Millions Trophy (1400m) at the Gold Coast in January.

Peter Moody's smart import Ghostmilk is having a short break. She'll return to racing in late August for mares' races. The mudlark 6YO won three successive city races in Melbourne before just missing out in a photo-finish to Mr Unforgettable in the Listed Winter Stakes at Rosehill on July 17. The Grp 2 Stocks Stakes (1600m) at Moonee Valley on Sep 11 is a likely target for Ghostmilk.

Promising Kiwi stayer Mr Charlie has joined the Peter Moody stable. The 4YOs owners reckon Moody's the man to take Mr Charlie to spring Cups glory. He's won three of his 11 starts, including a slashing win by more than 6 lens in the NZ St Leger (2500m) at Trentham in March. Moody says: 'His form in New Zealand is excellent and with natural improvement, he can be a definite staying prospect in the spring.'

Thursday's Murwillumbah card has been postponed due to the rain-affected track and there'll be a race morning inpsection at Wyong. The track was listed at Heavy-8 on Wednesday afternoon.

Craig Williams is understandably excited about his prospects of landing some major wins during the spring. Two of his key prospects are top-rankers Trusting and Decision Time. The Patinack owned rising 4YO Trusting finished less than a length behind Neeson in an 800m trial at Warwick Farm on Tuesday, signalling that he's all set to deliver on the potential he displayed in Melbourne last spring. Williams says: 'I was very happy with his attitude and the way that he trialled.' The jockey was impressed, too, by Decision Time, who won his 800m trial in the best time of the morning.

Look out for mudlark Purple in the spring.Trainer Peter Snowden says the mare, who finished 4th in heat 12 over 800m, has seemingly got back her zest for racing following a lacklustre campaign last autumn. She is likely to resume in the Warwick Stakes on Aug 21.

The Victoria Racing Club (VRC) will launch a book, 'The Story of the Melbourne Cup; Australia's Greatest Race', at the Melbourne Museum on Wednesday, to mark the glittering150 year history of Australia's greatest horse race.

No plans yet...What's the next move for More Strawberries following her barrier trial at Warwick Farm on Tuesday morning? No-one seems to know. The Golden Slipper placegetter had her second barrier trial of this current prep and ran 3rd in the opening heat behind Khemosabi and Joku over 1200m. The Golden Rose is a likely target.

Looks like Craig Williams will be riding the Clarry Conners-trained Decision Time in the spring. He's to test the rising 3YO in a Warwick Farm trial on Tuesday. CW says: 'He beat some really nice horses in his three wins and when he went to the bigger races, only the best around beat him...Crystal Lily and Masquerader are both wonderful horses so he's right there with the best of his age and I reckon he'll be better as a stronger three-year-old as well.' Williams, who is riding with tremendous dash after a stint in Japan, will ride Patinack horses in the new season. Trusting will be one of them.

Eating the paint off the walls...Gai Waterhouse, the #1 Lady of Racing reckons she's had a disastrous year financially....Only 73 winners. She says: 'I want to be winning 100 races in Sydney and 10 Grp 1s every year and that is the break-even point...It has been a financially disastrous year this season. I have more than 100 staff and a wages bill of more than $60,000 a week...I haven't got anyone backing me like the chicken kings [the Inghams] or Darley, so unless I'm training winners I'm going out backwards...I want to be back up there and that is the challenge for next season. I have a very good team of horses and I'm confident we will get the stable up and going again.' Gai's team for the new season centres on some useful 3YOs. The $1 million Golden Rose at Rosehill on Aug 28 the first target. Squamosa and autumn stars More Strawberries and Brightexpectations are her main prospects for the GR. Herculian Prince and Once Were Wild look like two of her best chances for the spring staying races.

King flood! Trainer Darren Weir is in record books territory. He has moved to just one win below his best season in Melbourne thanks to the win of Rue Maple at Moonee Valley. But he's also close to a rare record - equalling David Hayes's achievement of preparing more than 1000 runners in any season. Weir will become only the second trainer in Victorian racing history - and the only trainer this season - to pass that milestone. With 85 boxes at Ballarat, Weir runs one of Australia's biggest racing stables. He has no plans to move to Melbourne.

Gai Waterhouse's unbeaten colt Squamosa is chasing the prestigious Golden Rose after not6ching a second decisive career victory in the Schweppes Handicap (1400m) at Randwick on Saturday. He raced up on the speed before drawing away at the top of the straight for a 3 lengths win. Gai says: 'He's a very good colt, very impressive...Early on he did a few little goofy things like flick his head about but when he got one outside the leader it was just click, click, click - how far do I win by?' Squamosa will have his next start in the Grp 3 Rosebud in 3 weeks' time.

Japan backons again for Craig Williams...The popular jockey, just back from a 2 month stint in Japan, says he plans to ride there again after this year's spring carnival. And he's very confident he can ride a Japanese winner of the Melbourne Cup. He won Japan's premier staying race, the Tenno Sho at Kyoto in May on Jaguar Mail, who will be Melbourne Cup-bound if quarantine issues can be sorted out. The stayer is owned by Katsumi Yoshida, owner of 2006 Melbourne Cup winner Delta Blues. Bookies have Jaguar Mail at 20/1 for this year's Cup.

TAB Sportsbet price movers for Saturday's major cards (as of Friday evening):

MOONEE VALLEY
1 Broadcast $10 - $4.80 ($500 @ $10, $500 @ $8.50, $1,000 @ $6.50, $500 @ $5.50).
2 Street Belle $5 - $3.60 ($2,000 @ $5).
3 Charbet $1,200 @ $7.50, Monarto $10 - $7.50 ($1,200 @ $10).
4 Twenty Grand $6.50 - $5.50 (1,200 @ $6.50).
5 Pink Shimmer $13-$8 ($500 e/w @ $13,$500 e/w @ $9.50).
6 Tiakinui $5.50 - $5 ($1,100 and $800 @ $5.50), Arch Symbol $8 - $6.50 ($1,500 @ $8).
7 Streak Fella $7-$5.50 ($2,000 e/w @ $7), Crabs $8 - $6.50 ($1,000 x $500 @ $8/$2.60).
8 Save a Penny $9-$7.50 ($1,500 @ $9).

RANDWICK
2 Hawk Island $2.60-$2.40 ($4,000 @ $2.60).
6 Purettan $16 - $11 ($450 @ $16).
7 Mazzini $7-$6 ($800 @ $7).
8 Triple Elegance $4 - $3.40 ($2,000 @ $4, $2,000 @ $3.80).

EAGLE FARM
4 Tycoon's Pride $8.50-$5 ($800 @ $7.50), Startling Pleasure $10-$7.50 ($600 @ $10).
5 Diago $5.50 - $5 ($1,700 @ $5.50).
7 Silver Spur $5-$4.60 ($1,750 e/w @ $5, $1,250 e/w @ $5).

Peter's up in arms...Peter Mair, one of the most consistent voices of dissent from the punting ranks, has come out with all guns blazing to cast doubt on the NSW Govt's latest money-munching plan. PM says: 'The suggestion that an incoming NSW Government is about to sanction the borrowing of $175 million to rebuild metropolitan racetracks is absolute nonsense - not a hope in Hades. It will be interesting to see how this merger-magic is reported in the mainstream media...As of now, however, the AJC and STC should take this proposal with a grain of salt - welcome all it implies perhaps but defer a finally-implemented decision on a merger until after the coming election when they can present the incoming government with a credible business plan . The risk is about merging prematurely under the influence of a politically inspired infrastructure proposal that is just not credible - a proposal from a government on the ropes about an industry on the ropes allowing a board of RacingNSW on the ropes to take control of a merged entity that will immediately be on the ropes, and defenceless. Among other things -- forget TVN, cancel Canterbury and welcome oblivion.

Peter Mair goes on to say: 'I would place no credibility in this merger-magic-madness actually going ahead, even with work supposedly to start later this year. It is improper for a government about to be relegated, dumped at the tip, to attempt to compromise the incoming administration. With not a hope in Hades of the $175m injection actually going ahead, the cheap ploy here is to draw the incoming government into a debate that is critical to the political fate of racing electorates -- the racing industry is being used, as usual. Does anyone seriously expect Trackside ( virtual racing game) to attract the turnover to service and repay an investment of $175 million - the Trackside take won't even pay the interest and, not reformed, the industry will be bankrupt and unable to repay anything anyway.'

Golden Slipper winner Crystal Lily has performed well in a jumpout at Flemington. She won her 800m heat on a slow surface with Harry Hillier in the saddle. Simon Zahra, who trains the filly in partnership with Mathew Ellerton, says Crystal Lily's effort pleased the stable.

Good to see the talented young rider Ibrahim Gundogdu (22) has been licensed to resume riding at Moonee Valley tomorrow. He's been off the scene for almost 12 months due to visa problems. The Turkish-born rider's promising career was blocked when his work visa expired in July last year and he only recently gained permanent residency in Australia.

Top jockey Stathi Katsidis has a full book of rides as he zeroes in on the Brisbane jockeys' premiership at Sat's Eagle Farm card. His season's tally currently stands at 72 wins, five ahead of Larry Cassidy and six clear of Jim Byrne. Patinack Farm has engaged SK for Second Draw in the Hamilton Hotel 2YO Handicap (1500m). His other rides: Attallus in the Sky Racing 1MW Handicap (1800m), Another Takeover in the Tattersall's Arcade Handicap (1200m), Lochiel in the Total Sports Travel 3YO Handicap (1600m), Diago in the Hardy Brothers Jewellers Class 6 Handicap (2100m), I'm Ruthless in the Carlton Draught Country Cup (1200m), Fifteen Carat in the Tattersall's Mile and Absent Friends in the Des Lambert Memorial Class 6 Handicap (1400m).

Michael Rodd will ride star Queensland filly Military Rose when she returns to racing in The Rosebud (1200m) at Rosehill on Saturday week. Trainer Gillian Heinrich engaged Rodd because regular rider Stathi Katsidis will be in Melbourne to ride Shoot Out in the Bletchingly Stakes at Caulfield.

Help me...US Hall Of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux is having treatment to beat his addiction to booze. Kent (40) told the Daily Racing Form he has started counselling because of a failed breathalyser test at Woodbine in Canada in July.

Smart filly Chance Bye has been injured in a track gallop at Kembla Grange, leaving her spring program in jeopardy.

Bart's back...After recovering from pneumonia, Bart Cummings had his first day at the races since the Golden Slipper in April - and immediately struck with a winner when Markab notched his second straight win in the Winning Post Restaurant Handicap (1580m) at Canterbury. Bart's been off the track since falling ill to a serious bout of influenza. He spent the early winter months recovering at home.

Rave reviews...The news is all good for the new crop of rising 3YOs. Some of them turned in real eye-catching effortsm at the Rosehill barrier trials. Sydney's Daily Tele says: 'Golden Slipper runners Solar Charged and Hinchinbrook won their respective heats - the former by nearly eight lengths - as did Slipper scratching Masquerader. Such was the excitement among the trainers about the horses turning three on August 1 that Solar Charged's trainer John O'Shea declared: 'This is a vintage year. It's a very good year for our rising three-year-olds...I know how good Solar Charged is and she could only finish sixth in the Slipper, even though she was unlucky in that race and should have finished in the money...She's as good a two-year-old as I've trained. I think the colts were a bit behind the eight ball in the autumn, but they look like they'll catch up later on and be headlined by the likes of Hinchinbrook.'

The Financial Review is reporting that Telstra is looking to buy a stake in TVN. It says Telstra is 'in discussions' with TVN in a move that could pave the way for a possible bid for rival Sky Channel. According to the report, the early-stage talks between TVN and senior Telstra execs have centred on the telco giant taking as much as a quarter stake in the racing channel.

Spring news...Top wfa star Theseo will return to racing in the Warwick Stakes on Aug 21. After that it'll be the Grp 2 Chelmsford Stakes (1600m) at Randwick on Sep 4 followed by the Grp 1 George Main Stakes (1600m) at Randwick on Sep 25. Theseo will head for Melbourne to tackle the Grp 1 Caulfield Stakes (2000m) on Oct 9 - and then the big one, the Grp 1 Cox Plate (2040m) on Oct 23.

So, stewards have found no fault with Danny Nikolic's ride on Trustus at Flemington - that's the ride that sent the horse's co-trainer Brian Johnston into sucha rage that he went complaining to the stewards about it, more or less accusing Nikolic of 'stopping' the horse. The issue was resolved yesterday with the stewards rejecting Johnston's claims. Big question now: Will the trainer apologise to the jockey for making unfounded allegations about his ability and his honesty?

Craig Williams reckons he's got a great Melbourne Cup ride...but only if Japanese horses are allowed to enter Australia. Craig returns to Melbourne racing with a good set of rides at Wednesday'sSandown Lakeside meeting. He's been riding in Japan and one of his wins there was on the Katsumi Yoshida-owned Jaguar Mail in the Tenno Sho (3200m). Craig is crossing his fingers that Jaguar Mail makes it to Australia for this year's Melbourne Cup. He says: 'If he comes out, I've got a great ride in the Melbourne Cup.'

AJC Derby winner Shoot Out will arrive in Melbourne on Wednesday to kick off his springcampaign in Sat week's Grp 3 Bletchingly Stakes at Caulfield.

Scone trainer Paul Messara says his top mare Alverta may race on next season. Alverta turned in a slashing performance to run 3rd to Starspangledbanner in the July Cup at Newmarket UK after racing up the centre of the track. PM says: 'She will run in a Grp 1 1300m race at Deauville on Aug 8 and then a 1400m Grp 1 on Arc Day...If she runs well in those races, there is a chance we will wait another year before going to stud, because there's a few more Grp 1 options up there through to the end of the year.'

Max gets the message...Those ridiculous bans on on-course computers have copped a sledging from veteran racing scribbler Max Presnell. In his SMH column he says: 'Racing, particularly in NSW, is lagging behind the field when it comes to technology. The ban on computers at courses is regarded as farcical, except by those shrouded by Betfair phobia.

The Rosebud at Rosehill in two weeks' time is the next target for impressive Crossbow, another winner for Gai Waterhouse at Rosehill on Sat. She says: 'I adored this bloke from the first time I saw him at Magic Millions and I told the owners he was the nicest colt at the sale but when we got him into the stables he just kept going shin sore. I told them 'geld him and you will have a horse' and it seems to fix the problem.'

Unlucky...Mark down the Peter Snowden trained Rampart as one to follow...The Commands colt was unlucky behind Crossbow in the 2YO c&g 1100m. He was blocked for a run in the straight before hitting the line hard. Jockey Josh Parr says: I had no luck at all.'

Robert Smerdon is confident his Caulfield winner Breitling will develop into a sprinh star. He says: 'We rate him pretty highly. He ran well first-up and we thought the winner must be a pretty fair horse. We reckoned he had improved off the run. He's got good natural ability and he's got the best nature. Bossy fired him out of the gates and as soon as he dropped his hands, the horse popped in behind the leadersHe quickens when you ask him. Hopefully, he is up to the better class of three-year-olds in the spring.'

Blake Shinn is out for a week after pleading guilty to careless riding in the Winter Stakes at Rosehill... Shinn allowed his mount Adnocon to shift in on the line, a move which caused interference to Gergis and O'Crikey. Stewards handed Shinn a five meeting ban, which sidelines him from Sunday week before he returns to the saddle on Aug 1.