I really hate this headline.
On Soldier's Tale, from Racing post...
Soldier's Tale in box as he succumbs to bug in yard
Soldier's Tale: the seven-year-old may now be retired to stud in Victoria
Rodney Masters and Tony Elves
WITH Jeremy Noseda's stable currently under a cloud, the trainer decided not to run star sprinter Soldier's Tale in Saturday's Golden Jubilee Stakes, and the seven-year-old may now be retired to stud in Victoria, where he is already being advertised as being “so tough he could be Australian”.
Soldier's Tale won the Golden Jubilee last season but on Saturday morning Noseda decided to pull him out of the Group 1.
He said:“We had a little bug going around the yard at the end of last week and, as they say, we will have to have a time out because things aren't exactly as they should be.”
He added: “We will gather ourselves together and give them ten to 14 days off and have them back flying from mid-July onwards. We have a few horses with a few issues at the moment, and I'm just not quite happy with Soldier's Tale.”
Last month Adam Sangster, son of the late Robert Sangster, completed a deal to buy Soldier's Tale from owner-breeder Syd Belzberg, who heads the car-rental company Budget. The horse will take up stallion duties later this year at the Sangster family's Swettenham Stud at Nagambie in Victoria.
Asked if the horse will race again before leaving for Australia, Noseda added: “Probably not, but there is just a chance he'll run in the July Cup if everything came right. It would be fabulous to let him show people once more what he's capable of. But if he doesn't run again, I've no complaints because he has been a terrific horse, a brave horse, and such a great servant to the yard.”
Limited to eight starts, Soldier's Tale almost died after surgery to a leg. He also suffered a pelvic fracture and two bouts of colic.