THE Group 1 Caulfield Guineas is still five weeks away – a speck on the horizon for punters — but for connections of Akkadian and Subraise the stallion-making feature looms as a tempting possibility.

Both 2017 Magic Millions Gold Coast yearling sales graduates, Akkadian and Subraise broke maiden status in contrasting fashion at Ballarat on Wednesday, taking critical steps towards elite level.

Trained by Matt Cumani, Akkadian withstood a fierce challenge from Starvirgo, another Guineas nominee, to deservedly succeed after finishing third in the Group 2 VRC Sires Produce at Flemington in March.

Cumani has no hesitation in giving the colt another crack at silk class.

“It’s his three-year-old year now and let’s give him every chance,” he said. “He’s a nice, consistent horse. He’s got a great temperament and I think if he’s not Guineas class, then he’ll make a nice city horse.

“I just liked the way he fought on. For a second there down the straight, they got to him and I thought they might have a little bit more toe than him but he let down and the length of the straight really helped him.

“I always thought that he wants further and whether it’s a mile this time or whether it’s 1800 or 2000, we’ll see. There’s the Guineas Prelude we obviously have to take into consideration.”

Jockey Ben Melham was impressed with the feel Akkadian gave him.

“He was in for the fight,” Melham said. “He was actually headed but he fought back. He’s a promising horse.”

Subraise, a $250,000 Magic Millions purchase, also holds a Guineas entry, impressing John Allen with an emphatic finishing surge.

“It was a good effort considering they went a very slow tempo, the horses that ran second and third (Bill The Bee and Rising Thunder) gave very good kicks,” Allen said.

“It mightn’t have been visually impressive but I think he ran home in good time.

“Look, he’s a nice horse and will appreciate a step up in trip as well.”

CARBERRY’S LANDMARK DOUBLE
AS racing pedigrees go, few are richer than Thomas Carberry’s.

The son of famed Irish jockey Tommy Carberry, who also trained the 1999 Grand National winner Bobby Jo, Carberry’s grandfather Dan Moore was also a gun horseman.

Until January, Carberry’s training lineage had lain dormant as he rode trackwork for Darren Weir and, previously, for Bruno Schutz in Germany, Martin Pipe in England and Robbie Osborne in Ireland.

Seven months after taking a leap of faith to branch out with his partner Monique to form Carberry Roche Racing, the couple savoured an emotional landmark breakthrough with a double at Ballarat.

“That’s the first double, my first winners today,” Carberry said after Diplomac Jack, specked from $61 to $41, and Rakti Roulette both triumphed.

“My two stable stars, I brought them down. I train just over the back of the hill, so they exercise here every day.”

Both Roche and Carberry worked for Weir before forming their own operation.

“Monique is my partner and we’ve started Carberry Roche Racing, they’re Monique’s horses and I train them,” Carberry said. “We have space for 10 horses, we have seven there at the moment and the two stable stars got the job done.”

Carberry first worked as a breaker and pre-trainer at Eliza Park International before transferring to Ballarat with Weir.

Carberry competed as an amateur rider in Ireland, winning a Galway hurdle and a point-to-point. Roche has a corporate background but changed careers to chasing racing objectives, completing a diploma of equine management at Marcus Oldham, where she was dux.