Justin Snaith will gallop African Night Sky at 11.30am – an hour before racing -at Kenilworth on Saturday in order to put the Winter Series winner on track for the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and the Sun Met. The stable’s carefully mapped-out plans were thwarted when the Jet Master Stakes was postponed until February.

African Night Sky (Michael Price)

Snaith said yesterday: “He will work over 1 400m with Elusive Silva (Grant van Niekerk) and the relative weights of the two jockeys works out well because I am looking for a bit of gut-buster for African Night Sky.”

In the meantime Snaith is hoping that his recent rich vein of form holds for Saturday’s Forus Cape Guineas in which he has 7-1 shot Do It Again as well as 12-1 chance Sir Frenchie and 25-1 outsider Cot Campbell.

He said: “We are in a good place with the horses at the moment and Do It Again (Fayd’Herbe) did a good gallop last week. We have been waiting for the longer run-in with him because he always comes from too far back and he found trouble in the straight in the Selangor. Had it not been for that I think he would have won.

“Having Callan Murray will help Sir Frenchie’s chances. The horse is well and enjoying his racing but I just wonder if he is good enough to win the Guineas. Only the race will tell.

“Cot Campbell (Van Niekerk)  has twice found trouble on the inside fence. He had to switch out and he wasn’t beaten far in the Cape Classic or the Ready To Run. He galloped particularly well last week – actually it surprised me how well he did work – and it was certainly good enough for him to be a contender.”

By Michael Clower

Brighteyebushytail is a name more fitting of a tree squirrel than a racehorse but the racehorse of that name would hardly care what his name is. Duncan Howells, who saddled a double at Greyville on Sunday, appears to have a decent sophomore on his hands and the son of Dynasty looks destine for far better things than the Excel Tax & Accounting MR 66 Handicap that he contests at Greyville tomorrow.

Duncan Howells

The colt finished well down the field in his sprint debut but is unbeaten in two over ground. He shed his maiden beating the well fancied Kapen Pride who has since franked that form and then got up to beat the giant Haddington at his last outing. Louis Goosen’s gelding has paid tribute to that form, winning three times since.

If there is a chink in Brighteyedbushytail’s armour it is that he has not been out since late August but even if he steps onto the track a little ring-rusty he should still have too much class for the opposition.

Anton Marcus has been conspicuous by his presence at Ashburton on some mornings and is picking the plums in the Howells string. Byline has the worst of the draw in the Say NO to Violence Maiden Plate, always a major disadvantage over 1400m on the Greyville turf, but Graham Elliot’s home-bred is a winner without a penalty. She should never have been beaten by stable companion Roy’s Kaitrina last time out and with Marcus aboard there are unlikely to be any mistakes tomorrow.

Kinsky’s Crusade can open proceedings in spite of her disappointing last effort over 1600m. Corine Bestel’s filly may have found the trip too far as her sprint form was promising. She drops back to the minimum trip here and with blinkers on for the first time the balance of the field are likely to be doing the chasing come the final furlong.

Mighty Mercury looks the part in the second where he is rated a couple of kilos better than his opposition. Charles Laird’s runner contested an apprentice handicap last time out that turned into a race of pot luck, but prior to that got to wining a neck of Winter Blues with Marcus in the irons. This will be his third run after a break and he makes a lot of appeal. Captain Cobalt seems to prefer the poly after a below par performance on the turf last time out and along with Fives Wild is the pick of the balance.

Wendy Whitehead appears to have a smart filly in the making in Twice As Smart who stepped out of the maidens into a tough handicap and finish second to Accidental Tourist who was recording her third win on the bounce. That win earned her a further two-point rise in the handicap but that should not be enough to stop her here although she does faces some seasoned older horses.

By Andrew Harrison

The Western Cape Equine Trust, which finds new homes for retired racehorses, has lost much valuable equipment as a result of a break-in at its Philippi stables.

Committee member Leigh Taberer said yesterday: “The tack room was cleaned out and we lost our saddles, bridles, lead reins, halters and blankets despite our having serious locks on the front gates and on the tack room door.”

The Trust is appealing for donations of second-hand tack. Anybody with anything suitable is asked to contact Ms Taberer on 071-226 6999.

By Michael Clower

The Eric Sands filly has shown superior form to this opposition and is rated the best of them. “She got injured and she then had an abscess,” says her trainer, explaining the lengthy absence. But will she needs the run? “I hope not and she has had a gallop here.”

Eric Sands (hamishNIVENPhotography)

She opened at 22-10 with World Sports Betting on Sunday and was 2-1 yesterday. The Dennis Drier newcomer Sunshine Mint is second favourite at 33-10 with Vice Versa on 7-2. This Brett Crawford runner did not get a clear run on debut and rates the danger ahead of the Snaith filly Spam Alert (5-1).

Aldo Domeyer’s mount Waterbaby is a 9-1 shot and has been off since August. “She cracked her pelvis in her last race so she will probably need it a bit,” says Paul Reeves.

His Photocopy reverts to 1 200m in the TAB Telebet Maiden 35 minutes later and is 22-10 favourite but the shorter trip may not be in the colt’s favour. “He is not a sprinter but he has been haemo-concentrating,” says the trainer, explaining the drop in trip (haemo-concentrating does not have as much impact in sprints).  “We are hoping to get a win out of him before he is gelded, and he is fit and well in himself.”

In the circumstances, though, the vote goes to Bernard Fayd’Herbe’s mount Count Rosberg (33-10) although there is not much in it between him and 5-1 shot Strabo on their last run.

Andre Nel has been having a quiet spell by his standards – even though Hoist The Mast so nearly did it in the Southern Cross – but Washington Square (28-10) may have come on enough to confirm last time’s placings with 19-10 favourite Inertia in the Tabonline.co.za Maiden.

Tyrandeus looks a big price at 15-2 on the form he showed the first time but he has been well beaten twice subsequently. “We gelded him and he is having his first run since,” says Candice Bass-Robinson. “He is a nice horse but he needs to strengthen up more.”

With the Snaith horses in such form Tease at 2-1 is given marginal preference over 17-10 favourite Dynasty’s Blossom in the Betting World Maiden (race four) while Make It Raine gets the vote in the Supabets Handicap despite the strong claims of Sassy Lady, Sun At Midnight and Swift Dancer.

By Michael Clower

It’s been a tough week for Markus Jooste but at least Just Sensual did him proud by getting up in the dying centimetres of the SW Security Solutions Southern Cross Stakes in the teeth of a gale at Kenilworth on Saturday.

From the stands it looked as if Donovan Dillon had just held on to spring a 66-1 shock on Hoist The Mast – Anton Marcus thought so too – but the camera showed that last year’s Cape Fillies Guineas winner had won for the sixth time.

Off for over five months and running over the shortest trip of her life, this was some training performance and Joey Ramsden disclosed: “She is not the biggest so her runs are limited and you have to plan them. I now think that the Garden Province at the end of last season was probably a race too many.

Just Sensual (Liesl King)

“She will go for the other fillies’ sprint (Sceptre on 5 January) but we might also do the Majorca with her too.”

Jooste, leading owner for every one of the past ten seasons, has put an enormous amount into racing and his investment has been a major contributor to employment. He may shy away from the spotlight in victory – a smiling “I’m not allowed to speak to the Press”  is normally all you ever get out of him – but he has given racing manager Derek Brugman free rein.

Plans for the horses, and observations about them, are happily given for onward distribution to the public, and no question is ever shirked or side-stepped. The horses are run openly and honestly while his trainers are positively encouraged to take each other on.

Sometimes the wrong horses win but never once have I heard a racecourse punter complain about the way they have been run. And in a sport where accusations are bandied about as freely as losing Tote tickets (and often as a direct result), that is a statement that speaks for itself.

If, as seems inevitable, he has to cut right back some people will find it easier to win races but many will be out of a job, some of the top stables will be decimated and the bloodstock industry (which he has heavily supported through Klawervlei and at the CTS sales) will take a serious knock.

But back to Kenilworth where Justin Snaith landed a four-timer to take his haul to 13 of the 27 races run in Cape Town so far this month.  Three of Saturday’s winners  were ridden by Grant van Niekerk who looks like being the major beneficiary should Bernard Fayd’Herbe decide against trying to starve himself within striking distance of 55kg to partner Snowdance in the Majorca on the richest day of the season.

Snaith said: “At this stage it’s Grant, otherwise it would be Anton Marcus. But Grant is putting in quite a bit of work in the yard and that is what is likely to get him the ride.”

Friendly Tibbs, described in the racecard as a reliable veteran and by Piet Steyn as “rough and tough like his trainer,” won for the eighth time in 71 starts in the 1 800m handicap despite seldom seeing his stable. He is kept in a paddock night and day to stop him box-walking. He cost a mere R20 000 yet his winnings now exceed R600 000.

 Sean Veale has been suspended for a week (17-23 December) for interference on fourth-placed Anime in the race won by Red Ginger.

By Michal Clower

Tap O’Noth is favourite to give Vaughan Marshall a fifth Cape Guineas win – despite a terrible draw – in the Forus-sponsored classic at Kenilworth on Saturday.

Vaughan Marshall

The Cape Classic winner is 5-1 with Betting World and 9-2 with World Sports Betting but for Marshall the 15 out of 15 pen is a case of déjà vu. “Captain Al was drawn 16 out of 16 when he won in 2000 and last year William Longsword came from 13 out of 16,” he recalls. “So, while this year’s draw is not ideal either, we will take our chances.”

The Milnerton trainer and stable jockey M.J. Byleveld (successful on Le Drakaar in 2008) have already worked out what they are going to do.

Confirming that the horse has the necessary gate speed, Marshall says: “He will have to get out fast and get across. It’s no good trying to tuck him in but you can sit him anywhere.”

The colt (a son of Captain Al) has deliberately not raced since the end of October but Marshall has no reservations about his fitness. “He has done very well since the Classic and he galloped a mile with two other horses on the course last Saturday week. M.J. rode him, he went well and I was very happy with him. He will definitely appreciate the longer straight on Saturday as he is a big, long-striding horse.”

Asked about dangers, Marshall shakes his head and says quietly: “We just need a bit of luck.”

Will he get a bit uptight beforehand or, after four such victories, does the 66-year-old take it all in his stride?  After all, he has been training for 36 years.

He grins. “For me, it’s no different to a maiden race. I still get excited with a maiden and I will be excited with this race too. But I might just get a bit more nervous and be harder to live with!”

White River is second favourite at 13-2 with Betting World which goes 7-1 Rocket Countdown, Do It Again, 8-1 Bold Respect, Undercover Agent, 9-1 Captain And Master, 10-1 and upwards others.

A notable absentee is Cape Merchants second Dutch Philip. Candice Bass-Robinson, who will be represented by Selangor winner Rocket Countdown, has decided to keep him for the $500 000 CTS 1200 on Met day.

By Michael Clower

Apprentice Ashton Arries is a rising star in the apprentice ranks. His seemingly emotionless demur belies a good head on his shoulders but probably more importantly, as the officially world’s best jockey Hugh Bowman acknowledged; “there are a lot of variables that go into being a jockey and being a good horseman is one of them I suppose.”

Horses run for Arries, as he showed when Hero Quest handed him the 50^th win of his career. Seemingly in trouble a furlong out, Brett Crawford’s runner rallied under Arries to hold off a late-charging I Am A Rock in the KZNBDS Trustees Handicap at Greyville yesterday.

Burra Boy (Candiese Marnewick)

Assistant Peter Muscutt, who learnt much of his trade under the legendary David Payne, was lavish in his praise of Arries – one trait not written in the tough Payne training manual.

“It’s always difficult to ride front-running horses with a tearaway leader but he had to access it,” reasoned Muscutt of the ride. “He rode a very good and intelligent race. He looks to have a bright future.”

Hero Quest is lightly race. Muscutt, a recent and valuable addition to the Crawford set-up, commented that the gelding had a big scar on a tendon which had probably resulted in him being so lightly raced, but was optimistic. “He’s a two-miler in the making. Over more ground he will be more effective.”

So one for the notebooks come the Champions Season marathons.

Also learning his trade under Payne was Duncan Howells who landed a double and demonstrated his prowess as he nursed former BSA Million winner Legend back from a potentially career-ending heart strain to win the EMS Red Sol Handicap. “That race (the million) possibly came to soon and he developed a heart problem but he has bounced back to his best,” said Howells.

“He was probably too far out of his ground,” reasoned Howells of his charges last race, “so I told Keagan (De Melo) to place this horse and see what he can do. He will end up going 2000m.”

Louis Goosen has made a bit of a splash since arriving in KZN and settling down at Ashburton and he landed another winner as bottom weight Captain’s Girl put a smart field of seasoned sprinters to the sword in the Jumpstart Montessori Handicap.

Eric Ngwane, KZN’s leading apprentice for the last two seasons, bounced the filly out smartly and then eased up to make his own pace. With a tail-wind to assist in the straight he kept her going strongly to easily hold top weight Muscat and the grey Isca.

“She can move,” said a gravel-voiced Goosen after a hard vocal ride and probably in need of some of his ‘wonder water’. “He (Ngwane) gave her a good ride. He listened and rode a very good race.”

By Andrew Harrison

Sean Veale’s mount produced a tremendous turn of foot to get up close home in the Laisserfaire over 100m further last time and has been a steady 33-10 favourite in the World Sports Betting book for the past week. She escapes a penalty – which could be a deciding factor – and she is reported in good shape.

“She is fine,” says Dennis Drier, adding: “She is a nice filly who will give a good account of herself.”

Dennis Drier

Jo’s Bond, who has to give her a kilo for winning this 12 months ago, is having her first run for more than six months but she is particularly effective over this trip and her stable is on fire with nine winners at the last two Kenilworth meetings. She looks the danger, particularly with Bernard Fayd’Herbe also on a roll.

“She has been ready for a long time but there have been no suitable prep races,” says Justin Snaith. “I have done what I can with her and she has been working well. She is tough and game.

“I am in form at the moment whereas some yards are not and I am trying to take advantage,” he adds – with Casual Diamond (12-1), Nordic Breeze (22-1) and Angel’s Trumpet (25-1) also in the stable line-up.

Jo’s Bond shares 15-2 third favouritism with Just Sensual – fast enough to take second in the South African Fillies Sprint but surely not the winner with a 2kg penalty and a five month absence- and the once-raced maiden winner Shufoog.  If she was with any other trainer you would dismiss this one as shooting at stars but Mike de Kock has not got where he is today by over-evaluating his horses.

According to the bookies the big danger to Sommerlied is Green Plains at 7-2, even though the handicappers reckon she should finish no closer than sixth. The Sean Tarry filly was second in the Allan Robertson and went close on her return in Power Grid’s Progress Plate.

Live Life (9-1) would probably prefer a furlong further but she is better than recent form would suggest. “She choked up a bit last time and she is doing well at home,” says Candice Bass-Robinson.

There is a lot of interest in the first Cape Town two-year-old races of the season. Vartanium (19-10) looks the part in race one where Snaith says that Captainofthesea (28-10) is “probably the most precocious” of his three.

By Michael Clower

The Vaal Classic track stages a ten race meeting tomorrow and an MR 86 Handicap over 1800m is the most interesting race.

Piere Strydom

Missouri was staying on in the Grade 2 Investec Dingaans over 1600m last time and looks likely to relish the step up in trip so is tipped to win under Piere Strydom, despite having to jump from draw nine. Royal Crusade is by Silvano out of Grade 1 Thekwini winner Royal Fantasy and won his maiden well over 1600m. In his handicap debut he likely needed it after a six month layoff and he lost ground at the start. He should improve a lot on that run and should be involved in the finish, although he also has to overcome a wide draw. His stablemate Wheel Of Time also returned from a layoff last time when over racing in a 1600m handicap. He had good maiden form from 1600m to 1700m before that and under Summer Cup-winning jockey Raymond Danielson this Tapit colt should settle better and can be involved. Double Mink has a nice stride and should enjoy this trip, but he was due to run on Thursday so is not sure to line up. Alssakhra beat the fair sort King’s County in his maiden over 1600m and the latter went on to win easily next time out over the same trip before later finishing third in the Listed Secretariat Stakes. Alssakhra ran well below par in the Ready To Run Cup and finished distressed. However, if he bounces back to his best he will be a runner here from a good draw under Lerena off an 81 merit rating.

Race two over 1000m sees the Mike de Kock-trained Kildonan gelding Highland Hero reappearing after failing narrowly over this trip on debut eleven days ago. He is a good looking sort who possesses a touch of class and will be hard to beat. Fearless Fred had some decent form last season and this tall sort should be cherry ripe so could return an attractive dividend for a place.

The first leg of the PA over 1800m is tricky. Tango Man was left with too much to do over this trip last time and initially stayed on well before running out of steam late. From a better draw he should be closer to the pace and this will also now be his third run after gelding. Short And Sweet and Dancing Rebel make most appeal of the rest.

In the seventh race over 2000m Ali Bon Dubai has a nice turn of foot and should relish the long straight here over his ideal trip. Gavin Lerena should get the best out of him and he can go close if not losing too much ground at the start.

The following race is an interesting MR 87 handicap over 1000m. Cathedral County has speed and class, although he does tend to start a bit slowly. He has also been found to be coughing occasionally so is not a banker proposition. However, he can progress beyond his current 85 merit rating and is tipped to win. Marmook is an excellent back up as he really caught the eye in his last start over this trip and that was his first run as a gelding. He bounded away from the opposition to win by 1,5 lengths and this Australian-bred by Medaglia D’Oro can handle a four point merit-rated raise. It would be no surprise to see him win his third race in just his fifth start.

By David Thiselton

…when the filly lines up in the Fastway Couriers Handicap at Greyville tonight.

The daughter of Captain Al has given the impression that she is way better than her form suggests and should be better than just a one-time winner. Not that she hasn’t tried, finishing close-up on a number of occasions but she has a lot going for her here from a good draw and useful apprentice ‘Phumie’ Mjoka aboard.

On a card that looks decidedly tricky, Captains Moll may be one of the more attractive bets although Goodman’s television co-host on Winning Ways, Paul Lafferty, may have other ideas as he says Zinzara is fit and well and over her optimum trip although her 13 draw is of concern.

James Goodman (Sportingpost)

There are also four apprentice only races card and after his four jackpot-winning rides on Wednesday, Denis Schwarz will be full of confidence going into the first of these when he partners Georgina for Alyson Wright in the second. However, Schwarz may have to take a back seat to Ashton Arries who can go one better on Symphony Sin Seven for Dennis Bosch while Dusty Button is way better than her last showing when eased up in the running and has a strong chance judged on her penultimate showing.

Midnight Messenger and Mighty Mississippi look the pick in the opening leg of the Pick 6 as the form of the balance of the field is very shallow.

Anton Marcus is back aboard Scrabble for Tony Rivalland in the Discovery Adventures Handicap, this combination running out easy winners of their maiden over course and distance before taking on much stronger in the Guineas Trial. Should Scrabble not run up to expectations then Majestic Moon and Rocket Master fit the bill as possible threats.

The mare La Suerte De Matar has finished runner-up in her only two outings in the poly and can go one better this time around in the Eagle Fire Control Handicap. She was only run out of it late behind Roy Is Second when jumping from the worst of the draw and should feature prominently.

Master Sam is the ante-post favourite and is another that has taken to the poly track after bolting in by five lengths over course and distance last time out. The Mark Dixon stable is in good form of late and Master Sam is quite capable of a repeat performance.

Doug Campbell landed a double at Greyville on Wednesday and Pathway To Glory looks capable of adding to that tally. He has his third run after a break in Tiger Moodley Handicap and should improve on his recent effort when finding traffic.

Lafferty is confident of a good showing from Zadora in the final race of the evening. “She is fit and sound and should be right there,” he said.

By Andrew Harrison