Trainer Michael Trotter headed to Caulfield for the first-up run of Rumbled Again quietly confident the mare would perform well in her return to racing.

Rumbled Again went for a break after winning the Group 3 Summoned Stakes (1600m) at Caulfield in November and returned in the Group 3 Mannerism Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on February 22.

Right from the time Rumbled Again entered the barriers for that outing, it all went pear-shaped.

Trotter explained Rumbled Again became fractious in the barriers and gave her head a knock and then jumped away awkwardly.

Post-race, stewards reported the mare had a degree of mucus following a scope while blood was noticeable in the right nostril.

The stewards also reported the mare pulled-up lame in the right hind leg.

It wasn’t the return outing Trotter wanted, and while finishing last, Rumbled Again was only 3-¼ lengths off the runner-up with the winner Coeur Volante scoring a four-length win.

“She played up in the gates last start and must have hit her head,” Trotter said.

“She had a small cut on the inside of her nostril which looked like she had bled, but when they scoped her, she scoped clear.”

“She pulled up lame in the off-side hind leg, a hamstring issue, which most likely happened when she jumped, and she’s got over that without a problem.”

“She also had mucus on her scope, so all in all not a lot went right, and to beaten 3-¼ lengths off the runner-up, it wasn’t too bad a bad run all things considering.”

Trotter is taking Rumbled Again to Sydney for the Group 3 Aspiration Quality (1600m) at Randwick on Saturday in the search of some soft ground.

“The weather in Sydney is going to be more favourable for her with a bit of give, rather than running down here in the (Group 3) Matron Stakes (at Flemington) on a hard track,” Trotter said.