“She now sits at a 103 rating and she’s a group 2 winner, so she’s done amazingly well this prep and pleasantly surprised most of us.”

Freedman’s other Coolmore runner, Manaal, is a stark contrast. The four-year-old is a six-time group race winner potentially in her final season of racing. She had her chance in both runs this preparation but finished second, in the Triscay (1200m) and Guy Walter Stakes (1400m). Freedman said he hoped a kind draw in two and the addition of winkers would spark Manaal, which was a luckless fifth in the race last year.

“Both times she’s been giving plenty of weight away to her opposition,” he said.

“I think first-up she was giving four and five kilos to just about everything around her and last start something similar.

“I think it’s probably tighter in the weights this time around, and we’ve made a slight adjustment putting the winkers on her. She’s never had any head gear before, so I just wanted to make a subtle change at this stage of her career to see if it just can find that little bit extra.

“When you’re carrying those weights, it’s always advantageous to have a little bit of cover, which she’ll be able to find from that draw on Saturday.”

In the final Golden Slipper qualifiers, Freedman has a Godolphin runner in each. Hardanger, which has finished top four in all three runs, contests the Magic Night Stakes and Outspan is in the Pago Pago. Freedman doubted Hardanger would back up into next week’s Slipper if she won, but he had hopes for Outspan.

“We’ve been drawing horrible barriers with him the last four times, so it was nice to see him draw a bit softer, and back to where he won his Saturday race, so I think with a nice run, he can run well,” said Freedman, who looks to have Incognito safely in the 16-horse Slipper field.

He said Maurice McCarten Stakes entry Enriched may be saved for the group 1 Galaxy next week. He has booked Kerrin McEvoy to ride Marhoona in the Galaxy.

Gollan takes positive from key scratching

Top Queensland trainer Tony Gollan was focused on the positives of potential leader Lagunanini coming out of Saturday’s Magic Night Stakes as he tries to qualify exciting filly Pembrey for next week’s Golden Slipper.

Lagunanini was scratched on Friday from the Rosehill fillies feature to race instead at Caulfield on Saturday, leaving the Magic Night with just nine runners and taking out a key pacesetter.

Pembrey, now in gate eight of nine, was into a $2.20 TAB favourite to grab the Slipper spot on offer. A dominant winner on debut at Eagle Farm, Pembrey was favourite for the Sweet Embrace Stakes at Randwick two weeks ago but finished fifth after getting caught behind runners in the straight.

Premier jockey James McDonald was questioned by stewards about why he did not push forward early to lead on Pembrey, a call he conceded he got wrong.

Gollan said the loss of Lagunanini, which was drawn two spots inside Pembrey, changed the shape of the race, but he was backing McDonald, who had six winners last Saturday, to sum up the situation early.

“We’ve drawn deep and James is obviously going to roll forward because she’s got natural speed,” Gollan said.

“Whether it means he leads on her or sits outside something, he will just work that out based on how they are going.

“But he’s had a ride on it now and knows what she can and can’t do.

“It’s certainly changed the shape of the race a bit, the Victorian horse coming out, but whether something else wants to pick up that slack, who knows? We’ll just let the race unfold.”

Asked if the scratching was a positive for Pembrey, he said: “The less runners the better. I can’t see it as bad thing.

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“She’s led and won everything she’s ever done until the other day when she got in behind them and didn’t get clear room, so leading is no concern to me. He’ll just put her in what he thinks is the best spot for her.

“She obviously raced well, she handled the travel and I think she’s possibly better this week, given she’s had longer to settle in, she’s done really well and it’s her third run in now.

“To me, she ticks all the boxes. Now it’s just if she’s good enough.”

In the colts and geldings qualifier, the Pago Pago Stakes, Chris Waller-trained Central Europe had firmed into a $2.20 favourite ahead of Bjorn Baker’s Warwoven ($2.70).