Kevin Shea gets Via Africa home in a thriller to win SA Fillies Sprint
The flying four-year-old Var filly Via Africa has joined the Mike de Kock yard and will soon be heading overseas for an international campaign.
Her former trainer Duncan Howells is fully in support of the decision that the connections have made.
Howells, who guided her to ten wins including three Gr 1s, said, “I wouldn’t say that I had her at her very best for the SA Fillies Sprint.
“She had been on the boil for a long time and threw a winter coat for the first time.
“I think the race showed that, because she only just won and in another stride or two would have been beaten. A horse can’t stay well forever.
“She will now have a break of six months or so while she travels and I think that will do her a world of good. If she comes back to her best she will be competitive overseas.
“I have far too many horses at Ashburton to be able to travel over there and oversee her and Mike knows the environment well, so it is the right decision to have moved her over to him.
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