They had identical origins before they went their separate ways.
Turn the clock forward three years and Bandi's Boy and Asgarda will find themselves in the same spot again when they vie for the $1 million Country Championships Final (1400m) at Randwick on Saturday.
It's a great achievement for Kooringal Stud, which foaled down and reared the dynamic duo.
Adding further merit is the fact both gallopers are by Kooringal's evergreen sire The Brothers War, who celebrated his second stakeswinner when Bandi's Boy claimed the Group 3 Star Kingdom Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill last Saturday.
|
|
|
|
Click the image above to watch Bandi's Boy (The Brothers War x Tibidabo) take out the Group 3 Star Kingdom at Rosehill.
|
|
Bandi's Boy arrived in the world on September 29, 2019, and would be the only foal of Hinchbrook mare Tibidabo following her untimely death.
The black youngster was reared as an orphan but made the most of his Kooringal upbringing to develop into a handsome individual and then thrive under the tutelage of Goulburn trainer Danny Williams.
Asgarda was foaled almost a month later on October 27, with Husson mare Minsk producing her second foal.
Minsk was only moderately performed - winning two races at 1600m - but was closely related to the Group 1 VATC Thousand Guineas winner Inaflury.
Asgarda was bred by Griffith's Lance Gilbert, with Kooringal retaining a share and suggesting she be sent to Doug Gorrel who had a terrific record with progeny of The Brothers War.
The matings of both Bandi's Boy and Asgarda were on the advice of Kooringal's Angus Lamont.
"Both mares went to The Brothers War after my pedigree analysis and recommendation," Angus said.
"The foals were reared at Kooringal before heading off to the breakers."
Bandi's Boy could not have been more impressive in his final lead-up to the Championships, powering to the line in the Group 3 feature at Rosehill.
This followed Bandi's Boy's impressive win in the SERA Championship Qualifier (1400m) at Moruya.
Asgarda has taken a different path to the $1 million finale and has done Lance and her large ownership group proud.
The Wagga-trained bay battled away gamely to be beaten a neck by Bianco Vilano in the SDRA Championship Qualifier (1400m) at Albury.
Asgarda then tackled the $75,000 City Hcp (1175m) at Albury and was again brave in finishing third.
Kooringal's bottle green colours with white logo will be sported by Asgarda.
The Brothers War boasts the impressive statistics of 24 winners from 37 starters this season.
|
|
|
Above: Asgarda (The Brothers War x Minsk) will aim to take down the mighty challenge of the Country Championships at Randwick.
|
|
Kooringal's dual Group 1 winner Prized Icon continued to gather momentum when Price Cost broke through at Beaudesert.
The three-year-old made light work of the heavy conditions to win by three lengths over 1400m.
Price Cost capped off a big month for Prized Icon with Aichi Icon, Mark's Icon and Pisa Cake other winners for the More Than Ready stallion in March.
Trained at Pakenham by Annabel Neasham, Aichi Icon led throughout at Cranbourne.
Mark's Icon stormed home over 1600m at his home track for Wagga trainer Darrell Burnet, while Pisa Cake prevailed on debut on the Beaumont track at Newcastle.
|
|
Albury trainer Garry Worsnop followed a tried and true method when he spent up at Kooringal's digital auction on the Inglis online platform.
Garry has been a loyal supporter of the sale and reaped the rewards when Just Like Liam won the $50,000 Country Magic on Albury Cup Day in March.
Just Like Liam is by the prolific winner-producer Magic Albert and was bought by Garry for $6000 at Kooringal's inaugural online sale in 2020.
The chestnut has notched three wins and five placings from only 12 outings for more than $70,000 in earnings.
Garry purchased three yearlings at the latest March sale, including the top-priced Prized Icon colt for $15,000.
The black or brown was from the smart Adelaide performer Embecee Lil.
Garry purchased another Prized Icon for $10,000 and picked up a Sandbar colt for $9000.
|
|
|
Above: Just Like Liam (Magic Albert x Paese Commands) has been a good money earner for the Garry Worsnop yard (Picture by Mark Jesser The Daily Advertiser).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
