Cliff Brown was all but ready to abandon his South Australian Derby plans with Scintillante after a disappointing effort in last weekend’s Chairman’s Stakes (2000m). But after careful analysis, the veteran trainer is sticking with his original plan to contest the Group 1 South Australian Derby.

Scintillante finished near the rear last Saturday, but Brown has since dissected the race and believes the run wasn’t as bad as it first appeared.

“Watching it live, I was ready to go home,” he said. “But once I studied the sectionals, it changed my view. He ran some of the fastest closing splits despite not seeing daylight.”

The colt had previously run third in the Port Adelaide Guineas on his Adelaide debut and was a popular pick to take out the Chairman’s. With Blake Shinn unavailable this weekend, Billy Egan steps in. He won last year’s Derby aboard Dunkel and is familiar with success in the race.

Brown, who has won the South Australian Derby three times, says Scintillante has bounced back well.

“He’s been eating, working lightly each day, and his bloods came back fine,” Brown said. “We’ll try to ride him closer from a better draw this time and see if he can improve sharply.”