'We'll find out how good he is' - can impressive debut winner Powerful Glory follow up in the Mill Reef?

The recent Mill Reef roll of honour is less of a who's who and more like a who's that? Just look at the past five winners.

Pierre Lapin is 1-42 since scoring in 2019. He is now rated 64 and plying his trade in low-grade Irish handicaps. Wings Of War (2021) took 21 starts and three new stables to register his next victory in Hong Kong.

Alkumait (2020) was rushed off to stud after failing to train on. Sakheer (2022) is yet to beat a rival in two starts this campaign and 2023 winner Array has been unsighted since finishing down the field in last season's Dewhurst.

Since the days of star colts Ribchester (2015) and Harry Angel (2016) creating strong impressions at Newbury, the Mill Reef has been farmed by the downright precocious. Fingers crossed something with long-term potential comes to the fore this time.

Ribchester ranks highly among the best horses Richard Fahey has trained and Powerful Glory, his representative here, looked potentially destined for the top himself after producing a wildly impressive debut success at Pontefract.

It will be interesting to see how he measures up against those who are already proven at Group level. This is a classic case of experience versus potential as Powerful Glory meets two rivals in Shadow Of Light and Symbol Of Strength who were second and third in the Gimcrack. The market prefers Shadow Of Light in the rematch, although that may prove incorrect.

Symbol Of Strength sat closer to a hot pace than the runner-up did at York and may deserve marking up. He was merely workmanlike when bagging the Sirenia Stakes at Kempton on his latest outing, but reportedly disliked the standard to slow all-weather surface and managed to defy a major market drift. Symbol Of Strength's consistent profile makes him a logical proposition for Placepot players.

Powerful Glory is not the only colt carrying an unbeaten record. Sarab Star justified strong market support to make a winning debut at Salisbury last month for Jack Channon and should have learned plenty from that.

Defence Minister is the other. He is two from two and showed a potent turn of foot to record a smooth victory under a penalty at Haydock recently. The fact that Wathnan Racing, who are so well stocked in the juvenile sprinting department, decided to supplement Defence Minister for this could be significant. If you see frailties in those occupying the top section of the betting, that is where the value may lie.
Analysis by Robbie Wilders

What they say

Karl Burke, trainer of Andesite
We think a lot of him. He'll wear a tongue-tie for the first time and we're also planning to ride him differently. He's high class but not the finished article yet.

Eve Johnson Houghton, trainer of Billboard Star
He was unlucky on his last two starts, when he's been short of room, but I think he'll go well. He's in good form and there's no reason he shouldn't be there or thereabouts. We're all guessing a little in terms of the ground but he appears to be fairly versatile.

Sylvester Kirk, trainer of Brian
He was unlucky at Kempton in the Sirenia. He was shuffled back into an awkward position but still ran well, so we decided to supplement him. When he won at Newmarket, the ground was soft and he enjoyed that, so it would be helpful if the ground was on the slower side.

Richard Brown, adviser to Wathnan Racing, owners of Defence Minister
He was impressive under a penalty last time and he has a good turn of foot. The quicker the ground the better for him. It’s a hot race and it’s a big step up, but he’s entitled to have a crack and we’ll find out where we are.

John Ryan, trainer of La Bellota
He's done nothing wrong and we think highly of him. He's just bumped into a couple in some decent races. I think stepping up to six furlongs will suit and he won't be bothered by the ground, so we're hopeful of a big performance.

Philip Robinson, racing manager to Sheikh Rashid Dalmook Al Maktoum, owner of Powerful Glory
I was quite impressed with Shadow Of Light at York and he isn't going to be easy to beat, but we're very hopeful and we'll find out how good our horse is. This is a totally different calibre of opposition and isn't going to be a walk in the park.

Charlie Appleby, trainer of Shadow Of Light
We've been pleased with him since the Gimcrack, in which he gained some valuable experience at this level. This looks another competitive event but he appears to have come forward since York and, if the ground is on the slower side, it shouldn’t be an inconvenience. We go into the race with plenty of confidence.

Clive Cox, trainer of Star Anthem
He made a pleasing start to his season, winning at Bath after finishing runner-up at Newbury. He ran respectably in the Coventry but took a bit of time to come back. We've had a few small hiccups, but he's been training well and won't mind any rain.

Adrian Keatley, trainer of Symbol Of Strength
We were delighted with his run in the Gimcrack and were a lot more confident than his starting price that he'd run a big race. It was his first attempt at Group level and he was only beaten by a length. He then toughed it out at Kempton, where the surface was against him, but he was pricking his ears when he crossed the line. He should have a good chance.
Reporting by Jonathan Harding

Read the rest of our Saturday previews:

1.30 Newbury: 'She would have a decent chance in a competitive race' - analysis and quotes for a tricky World Trophy sprint

2.25 Ayr: Can flying filly Alfa Kellenic complete a six-timer? Analysis and quotes for Silver Cup cavalry charge

3.00 Ayr: 'She's very interesting back against her own sex and up to six furlongs' - analysis and quotes for the Group 3 Firth of Clyde

3.35 Ayr: 'He looks an ideal type for this sort of race' - trainers on their Ayr Gold Cup contenders

4.01 Gowran Park: 'The pick of her form would make her hard to beat' - Joseph O'Brien runs six in bid for repeat success