Cape Guineas winner Tap O’Noth put up an excellent gallop with a companion at Greyville yesterday ahead of his SA Champions Season debut in the Grade 2 Daisy Guineas on Friday night May 4.

Tap O’Noth (Liesl King)

Meanwhile, Dennis Bosch is targeting the Grade 1 Tsogo Sun Gold Medallion over 1200m at Scottsville with his impressive Oratorio colt Cue The Music, who is a half-brother to the champion sprinter Val De Ra,

Marshall said about Captain Al colt Tap O’Noth, “I thought he worked extremely well, I was very happy with the way he strode out and after his work he was not blowing as much as I had expected him to be.”

Marshall will see how he runs in the Daisy Guineas before deciding his next step.

The colt’s four wins in six starts also includes the Grade 3 Cape Classic over 1400m. His only below par run to date has been last time out in the Grade 1 Investec Cape Derby over 2000m. However, both Marshall and jockey MJ Byleveld said the run had not necessarily meant he did not stay, as he had never been travelling well and was clearly just not himself on the day. He is in fact a half-brother to Strathdon, a Silvano gelding who has won two stakes races over staying trips.

Cue The Music, a R1,6 million purchase, caught the eye when winning a barrier trial over 1000m on the Greyville poly and followed up by beating a number of touted sorts by 2,75 lengths over the same course and distance. Bosch said the colt was still immature so was improving all the time. He plans to race him once more before he lines up in the Medallion.

By David Thiselton