Andrew Harrison
Trainer Tienie Prinsloo will have been a tad disappointed that Coast Of The Sun was relegated to reserve runner in both the Gr2 Golden Horseshoe and the Gr1 World Pool Moment of the Day Champion Stakes.
The son of Hawwaam shed his maiden in fine style when beating Benny And Paul who has since franked that form with multiple winners coming out of that formline and arguably unlucky not to have finished closer in the Gr2 World Pool Bet with the Tote Stakes on Sunday.
Prinsloo was lavish in his praise after Coast Of The Sun’s win and although the colt has missed the bus as far as contesting feature races this season, he gets a chance to showcase his ability when he lines up in the Lucky Fish Crazy Time Class 4 at Hollywoodbets Scottsville today.
The form of the opposition is not particularly deep and if Coast Of The Sun is as good as his reputation, he should put them to bed with ease.
He faces a useful handicapper in Alyson Wright’s charge Phutulicious who has the widest draw but seldom puts in a below par performance. He has gone close in his last two over course and distance. The Marquee was touched off over course and distance last time out and is seldom far back and should put in another forward showing. Seasoned trainer Ricky Maingard has had a good spell with his small string of raiders and Klein Karoo paid his way when winning first time out on the poly. The turf holds no fears and from the best of the draw he should be competitive.
Mike and Mathew de Kock can get the ball rolling in the first three races on the card for Hollywood Racing where they have competitive runners.
In the first Scots Wae Hae found solid market support in a promising debut and is relatively unexposed while Dean Kannemeyer’s runner Lennoxx has been knocking at the door for some time. He started as a narrowly beaten favourite last start and has put in two smart efforts on this course but has had his chances. Nautical Fire has shown promise in his first two starts while Rachel’s Boy is way better than his last start in the soft and gets first time blinkers.
The De Kock’s and Kannemeyer face each other again in the second. There was plenty of talk on course about Gimme A Fireball before making his debut and although a well beaten third he should have tightened up a lot from that outing. Year older Scotch Again started favourite on debut on the poly but was all at sea. He does look progressive and can make Gimme A Fireball work for victory along with AMC Roy On Fire was not far back to the promising Benny And Paul on debut and is likely to improve.
Hollywood Racing have had another stellar year and are the leading owners by a country mile, and if the De Kock’s are successful in the first two races, Sparrow Man can add to their tally that last week stood at 175 winners for the current season.
Sparrow Man made a smart sprint debut on this course racing very green. He steps up to a mile which should be more to his liking judged on his pedigree and could prove difficult to beat. A possible threat is Yogas Govender’s Trip To Venus who was narrowly beaten over course and distance last time out with a claiming apprentice aboard and now gets a seasoned rider. The Flat Cat could also be a threat. He has shown recent improvement after being stepped up in trip and the extra furlong should suit. United Tides has not been too far back in a couple of sprints and he too should prefer the step up in trip and is one to watch in the market.
Justin Snaith’s string will be headed back to Cape Town soon but he can still fire a few shots. Hazel Green was disappointing in her local debut but was taking to the poly track for the first time. Her Cape form was promising and she should have a strong chance on that form. Blenheim Palace has been improving with each outing and was close-up over course and distance last time out and should contest the finish. Soho Celebrity made good improvement last run over course and distance and finished just ahead of Blenheim Palace when last they met and her apprentice rider stays aboard.
In the fifth, Sohot Sowhat has run two promising races on the poly and had consistent Cape form on the turf but she could face a tough nut in Snaith’s filly Match That. She tried a mile in the Eastern Cape Fillies Guineas last run but came up against star Anotherdanceforme. She has been rested but back to a sprint in this company she should be competitive. Seven No Trump makes her local debut off useful Cape form over this trip and a light weight while Light Of Gabriel was not far back when lumbered with a big weight on the poly last time out but she is useful and should go well in this line-up.
The last two races are wide open handicaps. In the seventh, Spirit Of Shimla was a beaten favourite on the poly last run in what was a below par effort. She had consistent form prior to that and a return to her best should see her close. Treasure Island is taking time for her second win but goes well over this trip and is seldom far off the winner. From the best of the draw she is a strong contender. Act Of Grace was second best on the poly last start but her most recent win came on this course while Another Dream has dropped two points in the handicap and is also down in class. She carries top weight but is at home over this trip.
Finally, Fort Usher can sign off on the day for Darryl Moore. He made a promising debut behind Benny And Paul before going on to shed his maiden next time out and as mentioned before the Benny And Paul form has worked out well. From the best of the draw can follow up. The filly Christmas Rose has a difficult draw to contend with but was a recent maiden winner over course and distance and she does look progressive and faces modest older opposition. La Maddalena is back over what looks to be a more suitable trip and can feature from a wide draw.
