Same day, different headlines, but in combination they said it all:

"Silent Witness' Little Sister Flops" - Virtual Form Guide (Victoria,Australia). Master trainer Bart Cummings will go back to the drawing board with Empress Jade after the half-sister to Hong Kong superstar Silent Witness failed on debut.

"Silent Witness fans stunned after track flop" - Brisbane Courier Mail (Queensland, Australia). World champion sprinter Silent Witness shocked his supporters when he was easily beaten in a barrier trial at Sha Tin in Hong Kong yesterday.

Hmmm, not a good start to the Year of the Dog for the Jade Tiara youngsters it would seem. One minute the toast of the world and the next, well ... in the spotlight but without all the pleasant trimmings that attach to it when things are going well.

Silent Witness was beaten five lengths into third behind local sprinter Natural Blitz in the second fastest trial ever clocked at the track over 1000m (57.5sec) yesterday. The trainer says the horse is 9 kilos overweight, others mutter other reasons ... the fans just sit quietly and pray the fairytale hasn't ended.

And as for Empress Jade? Well, if all else fails and she doesn't take to racing, at least she has a career in breeding courtesy of her half brother.