Italy After Silver Shadow Gold

Time/Date - 14.25hrs local time/Saturday, August 22, 2015
Racecourse/Country - Royal Randwick/Australia
Surface/Distance - Turf/6f

Italy returns to Group Two level for the six-furlong Coolmore Silver Shadow Stakes at Royal Randwick, Australia, on Saturday, August 22.

The three-year-old filly, trained by John O'Shea, ran on strongly to go down by a half-head and a half-neck on her latest Group Two appearance in the Magic Night Stakes over the same distance at Rosehill Gardens on March 14.

She also ran well to take fifth in the Group Two Les Johnson Sweet Embrace Stakes, again over six furlongs, at Warwick Farm on February 28 and captured a Canterbury maiden over half a furlong shorter earlier the same month.

The Domesday filly, with Glen Boss in the saddle for the first time, makes her second start of the current season, having run on well to be fifth, beaten half a length in total, in a six-furlong Warwick Farm handicap on August 5.

John O'Shea reported: "Italy has had a good foundation and produced a lovely piece of work on Tuesday morning.

"She gets a significant weight drop from her first run and most importantly, under the set weight conditions of this race, she is well treated against fillies that she has previously been very competitive against at level weights.

"I think the race presents nicely for her, she gets back in the field and should be able to sprint down the outside and hopefully find herself in the money.

"I will be disappointed if she isn't because, although it is a very even field, she has the benefit of a good preparation and if she is going to be competitive at this level she needs to run well here."

Italy tackles five other three-year-old fillies, with Golden Slipper third Lake Geneva and Royal Randwick handicap scorer Kimberley Star set to provide the main opposition.