While winning is everyone’s ultimate goal, finishing second is better than finishing third and our rising four-year-old War Pass gelding Warinda finished an agonisingly close short neck second – his third successive second place, and sixth overall.

Racing at Moruya in the Moruya Panel And Paint Class Two over 1300m on a Dead rated track, Warinda, who started the race favourite settled back in the field and just failed by a whisker to defeat Pendragon three-year-old Dragon Affair.

Having had 11 starts to date for eight top three finishes, the connections of the Keith Dryden-trained galloper can’t complain, but we are all excited to see him cross the line in front in the coming weeks.

Having never finished further back that fifth in all of his runs so far, Warinda was secured from the draft of Widden Stud at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale back in 2012 and is fifth runner and winner out of the Woodman mare Tolinda, herself a half-sister to South Africa’s Champion Two-year-old Male Tytola (Last Tycoon), both out of the dual Group Three-winning, Group One placed Tolanda.