Injury has forced classy mare New Years Jay back into retirement.
The mare showed soreness following a recent Westwood Beach training run for trainer Graeme Anderson.
After the 10yr-old was diagnosed with a cannon bone injury, she was immediately retired, co-owner Brian Anderton said.
The thoroughbred trainer bred and raced the horse with the estate of the late Bryan ``Mouse'' Kennedy.
While there was disappointment, the retirement call had to be made, it was an easy one given her age and the fact she had only two more races on her agenda before time would have been called anyway, Anderton said.
``She has got a hairline fracture in a hind cannon bone. It's not the end of the world. I have still got her to breed from and we have had a lot of fun with her.''
New Years Jay was being prepared for a tilt at next weekend's Tuapeka Cup before having her final race in a mares' event at Addington, he said.
The mare had only recently returned to Anderson's stable after being kept in work at the stud while also being prepared to be put in foal.
Getting in foal to rookie sire Sweet Lou will now be the only thing on the mare's agenda.
New Years Jay's career recently hit new heights after she was brought back into work following her first retirement stint last year.
The Washington VC mare added three placings in four appearances to her previous record of eight wins and four placings.
Her third in the group 3 Maurice Holmes Vase and second in the group 3 Hannon Memorial gave New Years Jay black-type status to add to her breeding record.
The pacer's runner-up Hannon performance rates as one of her best racetrack performances. The 10yr-old charged home from last on a 54.9sec last 800m to go down by only a neck to her stablemate Titan Banner.
Of her eight winning performances, few could forget her incredible performance in winning a mile race at Addington from last in January 2015.
New Years Jay charged home from a seemingly hopeless position to win in the hands of Jonny Cox, who trained the horse in partnership with Amber Hoffman at the time.
The trainers prepared her for seven of her wins; Barry Purdon trained her to her last victory in July last year.
