As the only filly foal of the stakes-winning Bernardini (USA) mare Meidung, Banish's win in Saturday's $200,000
Placed in the Reisling Stakes, Silver Shadow Stakes, Furious Stakes and Keith Mackay Quality, Meidung earned her stakes win in the Twilight Glow Stakes at Sandown five years ago.
She had just two foals, the 3yo filly Banish and the unraced 2yo Medaglia D'Oro colt Repulse before her death in October 2015.
A daughter of Lonhro, Banish was making her eighth start in the Fillies Classic and owned wins at Ballarat and two at Cranbourne. But she seemed exposed when stepping up to stakes company, finishing sixth in the Listed Atlantic Jewel Stakes won by Shoals.
With Craig Williams in the saddle, Banish stuck to her guns gamely in Fillies Classic, repelling the challenge of I'll Have A Bit (Smart Missile) by three-quarter of a length with Touch Of Mink the same distance back in third (photo Grant Courtney)
We kept her ticking over and brought her to a peak for a race like this.
It's a great effort for a Lonhro filly like her to get a Group II next to her name.
"She's got something about her. She certainly had to show a great deal of determination to make a sustained run.
"She might have found her grand final there and it was a huge effort.".
The dam of Banish, Meidung, was out of a half-sister to another great servant for the Darley-Godolphin operation, the $1.2 million earner Pinwheel.
Banish becomes the 69th stakes-winner for the champion Lonhro.
