Streisand at number in Blue Diamond Stakes | Just horse racing

For the second time in three years, Clinton McDonald is ‘King of the Kids’, with Streisand winning Victoria’s premier race for two-year-olds at Caulfield.

McDonald claimed the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) two years ago with the ill-fated Hayasugi and it was another filly, Streisand, who took the honors on Saturday.

Hayasugi was ridden to victory by Jamie Melham, but this time it was her husband Ben Melham who had the wheel on Streisand, giving the filly an uninterrupted passage.

Melham sat three wide in third outside of leaders Lady Moscato and Closer To Free and comfortably allowed Streisand, wearing blinders for the first time, to travel well clear of that pair.

After balancing for the run home, Streisand and Closer To Free singled and only in the closing stages did Streisand gain the upper hand.

Streisand ($11) eventually came clear to score three-quarters of the $4.60 favorite Closer To Free, while Guest House ($4.80) finished in third place, giving the Melham family a first and third finish.

Streisand, a daughter of Magnus out of the Zoustar mare Zouper Star, entered the race on Saturday and was the most experienced galloper in the field of 16 horses, having competed in the races four times previously.

McDonald followed a similar campaign in preparing Hayasugi for her victory and the Cranbourne trainer once again couldn’t believe the prize his filly cleared on Saturday.

“She looks a lot like Hayasugi, very demure,” McDonald said.

“Hayasugi won by a head in the Prelude and everyone wrote her off in the Diamond and she went around, I think, for $18, and it was the same with this filly.

“She ran second twice, beat a short half head twice, ran fifth and was unlucky and won on her fourth start.

“I thought ‘am I doing this wrong, I think she’s going to be fine with this filly’, and I’ve been saying all along that she’s had a solid preparation, a flawless preparation, and she’s tough,

“And that’s what you need to win these races.

“I just thought she was the most experienced horse in the race. The way she walked around the assembly area was like she had been doing it all her life, and that’s how she raced.”

“It’s just amazing, watch out tonight.”

Melham said it was a long-term plan to win the Diamond.

He said that while Streisand was without a point, he had shown exceptional form before Christmas, before a short break, and had supplied every day since returning to the stable.

“That’s what you want to see from these two-year-olds,” Melham said.

“She is a ready-made racehorse. Clinton and the team have done a great job.”

“She’s a grumpy little thing on the ground, but a joy to ride on race day.

‘Blinkers for the first time today, we always thought she would get better with it.

“She was a little sleepy when she went to the start, and I gave her a squeeze and then she picked up and I stuck her up a little bit in the barriers to make sure she jumped because she was going to sleep on me again.

“A lot of the speed didn’t increase and in the end we weren’t going that fast. I was just in a position where I could control the race and she did the rest.”

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