Gerald Ryan dancing for a snitzel

By Glenn Davis

Just seven fillies in the past quarter of a century have shown they can take on and beat the boys in the Group 2 Queensland Guineas at Eagle Farm.

And, now the training partnership of Gerald Ryan and Sterling Alexiou believe they have another who can join the list when Sydney filly Snitzel Dancer starts in the 1600 metre feature on Saturday.

Ryan has won the Queensland Guineas four times - a feat matched in the past 25 years by champion Sydney trainer Chris Waller.

Ryan won his first Queensland Guineas in 2000 with Magnifier who was later joined by Regent Street (2002), Saxon (2005) while his last win was with Rothesay in 2010.

Snitzel Dancer confirmed plans to head north with the Group 1 Queensland Oaks over 2200 metres at Eagle Farm as her prime target next month after winning the Group 3 James Carr at Randwick on April 18.

The daughter of Snitzel has always shown promise but it wasn’t until her win in a 1500 metre Class 1 Handicap at Hawkesbury in March which convinced Ryan and Alexiou that she was on the right path for a Queensland trip.

She then made a huge step up in class to win her first stakes race in the James Carr over 1400 metres.

“Her first two runs back this campaign were at Warwick Farm and she was disappointing,” Ryan said.

“I originally thought it was just Warwick Farm but her sectionals in the first run back there was very good.

“She won well at Hawkesbury and a rating friend of mine said she was a $5 chance going into the James Carr on her form and she ended up starting at $21.”

Ryan had the option of starting in the Queensland Guineas or the Listed Gold Coast Bracelet over 1800 metres on May 9 to launch her winter carnival campaign.

“I thought about running her in the Gold Coast Bracelet but it’s a big step up in trip going from 1400 metres to 1800 metres," he said.

“This way she’s going two weeks into the Guineas and then two weeks into The Roses and then we’ll decide about the Oaks.

“If she shows she can stay she’ll head to the Queensland Oaks and if she doesn’t, she’ll head to the paddock.”

Snitzel Dancer was ridden by Kerrin McEvoy in her James Carr victory, but local jockey Ben Thompson will ride her in the Queensland Guineas.

“Kerrin is unavailable as he’s riding elsewhere so we’ve booked Ben Thompson,” he said.

Ryan has named Queenslander Brave Monarch as the main threat to his filly.

The lightly raced Brave Monarch has won four of his six starts and is coming off a dominant win in the Listed Daybreak Lover at Eagle Farm on April 18.

“I’ve been watching Brave Monarch a lot and I’ve watched three of his runs and his last win was very good,” Ryan said.