Season of Success: Season's Second Australian G1

Te Akau celebrated a memorable milestone when Geegees Mistruth (4 m Wordsmith – Miss Mana, by Jetball) provided the stable with its 21st stakes victory of the season, capturing the A$1 million Group 1 Sportsbet Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m) at Morphettville on 25 April - Te Akau's second Australian group 1 victory for the season.

The victory was significant in more ways than one. It marked the first Group One winner in South Australia for Te Akau Racing and, for trainer Mark Walker, represented yet another remarkable achievement in a career that has seen him play a pivotal role in 12 of Te Akau's 16 premiership-winning seasons.

Since Gingernuts (Iffraaj) won the Group 1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m) in 2017, Te Akau has now amassed 34 stakes' victories in Australia, including 15 Group One wins, underlining the stable's sustained success on both sides of the Tasman.

Already a winner of seven races from just 19 starts and more than NZ$1.5 million in prize money, Geegees Mistruth joined the Te Akau Cranbourne stable last October. It didn't take long for the talented mare to make her presence felt, producing a string of outstanding performances and finishing in the placings in four of her first seven starts for Walker, while often enjoying little luck in running.

Her Group One breakthrough had been building for some time. She charged home in the Group 1 Newmarket Handicap (1200m) at Flemington on 7 March before again finishing strongly for second over 1100 metres at Ballarat on 3 April after enjoying an economical run throughout.

Lining up in a race previously won by the unbeaten champion Black Caviar (Bel Esprit), Geegees Mistruth once again demonstrated her trademark determination. Ridden by Jordan Childs, son of iconic Kiwi jockey Greg Childs, she began well before settling beyond midfield in ninth. Patiently ridden, she tracked into the race approaching the home turn and unleashed her customary powerful finish to prevail in a thrilling blanket finish.

On a Good4 surface, Geegees Mistruth stopped the clock at 1:10.0 for the 1200 metres, with a slick final 600 metres of 33.4 seconds. Allowed to drift in the betting, she rewarded supporters with generous NZ TAB dividends of $38.40 and $8.30.

"Ben (Gleeson) and I were really impressed when we watched her work on Monday," Walker said afterwards. "Laura Winks, who rides her, said it was an outstanding piece of work.

"It's a wonderful result for the owners. They've been fantastic supporters and travelled across from Tasmania to watch her race. They experienced the disappointment of Oakleigh Plate Day back in February when she stood in the gates, and now they've enjoyed the ultimate high.

"She's only a four-year-old and has a very bright future ahead of her. To become a Group One winner is the pinnacle for both her and her owners."

Bred and raced by Elizabeth Geard Racing (Mgr: B Geard), Geegees Mistruth had already established an impressive record as a dual Group Three and Listed winner before adding elite-level success. She also provided the first Group One victory for her sire Wordsmith (Testa Rossa), while her dam Miss Mana has now produced four individual winners of 20 races.

Her pedigree also carries a strong New Zealand connection. Miss Mana is by former Fairdale Stud stallion Jetball (Marscay), while her granddam is by Sackford (Stop The Music), another stallion to stand in New Zealand and the sire of outstanding Group One-winning filly Facing The Music.

Geegees Mistruth's success elevated Te Akau's overall Group One tally to 106. 

The milestone follows Return To Conquer (Snitzel), now standing at Waikato Stud, becoming the stable's 100th Group One winner when he captured the Group 1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) at Ellerslie in March last year. Earlier this season, Seize The Day (I Am Invincible) claimed Group One number 104 in the Sires' Produce Stakes (1400m), before Belle Cheval (Savabeel) followed with number 105 in the Vinery Stud Stakes (2000m) in Sydney.

Now back preparing for another campaign from Te Akau's Cranbourne stable, Geegees Mistruth is scheduled to trial later in August before resuming in the A$750,000 Group 1 Moir Stakes (1000m) at Sandown on Saturday 5 September.

It is a race Te Akau knows well, having won the Moir Stakes with Imperatriz (I Am Invincible), the World Champion Sprinter and 10-time Group One winner.

Imperatriz won the 2023 Group 1 Moir Stakes at Moonee Valley in track-record time. She smashed the 1000m course record by running a blistering 56.47 seconds, bettering the previous record she had set herself just weeks prior in the Group 2 McEwen Stakes.  The mighty mare known as the "Queen of The Valley" was unbeaten at that track.