Piet Steyn’s dire predictions about the future – or rather lack of it – for the Western Cape’s small trainers had already come home to roost for Riaan van Reenen when Steyn issued his heartfelt plea for support of others like him.

The Philippi trainer quietly handed in his licence eight days before Steyn’s Tellytrack interview sent shock waves through the South African racing industry, warning that there would only be a handful of trainers left in Cape Town in a couple of years.

The general public knew nothing about Van Reenen’s surprise decision until he appeared alongside Glen Puller for Fee Ramsden’s interview and explained his position after the Robert Khathi-ridden Celestial Storm had defied top weight in the Interbet.co.za Handicap at Durbanville on Saturday.

Shortly before the race he said to the writer: “I only had ten horses at the end and it just wasn’t financially viable to continue but the writing was on the wall a long time ago. The market has gone to the big trainers.

“I have joined Glen as his assistant so I am no longer in the Premier division but my clients moved over to him. Really, I don’t mind because my health was being affected by the strain. I felt it was either join Glen or get a heart attack and die.”

Van Reenen had been training for almost 15 years and he met with immediate success, winning the Winter Classic, Winter Derby and Final Fling with Sweet Virginia. A Daughters Legacy won the Final Fling twice, the Victress and Ladies Mile and he trained Diana’s Choice to win a string of races including the Olympic Duel before she was sold to race in Dubai. At one stage he had over 35 horses but more recently he went into a training partnership with Carl Burger in an abortive effort to rebuild the numbers.

He said: “I was doing well and I was competitive for a long time yet I couldn’t survive. I ask myself how are those who are not doing well going to manage?”

But back to Saturday’s racing. Surely one of the most informative performances came from Helen’s Ideal who followed up her fifth in the Cape Derby with a convincing win under Aldo Domeyer in the 1 250m Rugby Handicap. “This was prep run for the (fillies) Winter Series,” said Paul Reeves. “The first leg is over 1 400m so I wanted to sharpen her up a bit.”

Unusually the last four races were all won by favourites but for those who believe in following the money the day began disastrously with 13-20 shot Rio Querari run out of it close home by the completely unconsidered 50-1 stable companion Marco Polo who was well handled by Louis Mxothwa.

“This was a big surprise,” said Justin Snaith. “The race didn’t quite go Rio Querari’s way and Richard Fourie found himself in front too soon, while the winner really wants further.”

But the five owners of Marco Polo were understandably delighted. The Pathfork gelding races in the blue, shocking pink diamonds colours of Kimberley-based Suzette Viljoen who has recently gone into horses in a big way and has 22 of them split between yearlings and two-year-olds. This was her first success while the winner is the first horse that farrier Robbie Miller has part-owned.

Eric Sands and Greg Cheyne took the other two-year-old race with 6-1 shot Driving Miss Daisy but it was the performance of runner-up Sanskrift that went into the notebook. The R800 000 newcomer, a full sister to Santa Clara, unexpectedly made the running and was only caught on the line.

Candice Bass-Robinson said: “She is not the biggest but she is strong and the family has quite a lot of speed considering their stout pedigrees. I was pleased.”

By Michael Clower

The lightly raced Tristful made short work of odds-on favourite Captain And Master and a useful field of gallopers as Tony’s Rivalland’s gelding out-gunned the field in the Morris Vee Sports Betting Progress Plate at Greyville yesterday.

There were few willing to bet against Captain And Master who was backed deep into the red, but Lyle Hewitson was never able to get close to the rail and stayed three-wide throughout as Run To Denmark towed the field along from his inside draw.

Sean Veale made an early move at the top of the straight on Tristful, catching the field flat-footed, and hitting the line nearly two lengths clear of Captain And Master, letting Hewitson know that he had been well beaten.

This was only the fourth start for Tristful and given that this was a Plate race he could still be flying under the handicapper’s radar with the Champions Season classics beckoning.

It was also just reward for owner Mary Liley who has a number of horses in training with Rivalland and who has been a staunch supporter of the sport for decades.

Most publicity in horse racing – and any sport for that matter – is centred around the high and mighty but there is always place for those at the bottom, for without them the sport becomes just another boring procession.

Lowly Leicester’s win in the British Premier League two seasons back created more column inches than Manchester City’s follow-up because it was a great story of David vs Goliath.

Michael Clower writes elsewhere on this page of Riaan van Reenen being forced to join Glen Puller due to lack of support and in order to keep going in a sport that they love.

Ashburton-based Julie Dittmer’s roots in the sport go back to race-riding at Richmond in KwaZulu-Natal and other long-closed venues, but has stayed staunch ever since taking out her trainer’s licence. She will be first to admit that there are no superstars in her string and has not had the good fortune of a really smart horse.

But more importantly than that, she has a band of staunch owners and Vanessa Williams – especially Michael Salter will have been ecstatic the way See The Prize dusted off her rivals in the DPG Logistics Maiden.

This was only the third start for the filly, bred by former Supreme Court judge Alan Magid and raised at Summerhill, and the manner of victory belied her 36-1 odds.

She was tailed off on the home turn with apprentice Khanya Sakayi in a seemingly hopeless cause as he scrubbed away. But he kept hard at the filly and she responded with a great turn of foot, reeling in the opposition from way back to win going away.

Granted, the field was not the finest, but it was a tremendous performance no less.

Sakayi, 45 winners, edged another three closer to losing his apprentice claim as he was also successful on Love Button for Glen Kotzen and Ooh La La for Doug Campbell, another graduate of the Richmond races. Not to be out-done, Sean Veale also registered a treble, Tristful and the also Liley owned Clara for Rivalland and Dieci for his regular boss, Dennis Drier.

By Andrew Harrison

The Turffontein Standside meeting on Saturday features the Grade 2 Senor Santa Stakes over 1160m where Cirillo will be hard to beat as long as the low draws do not prove unfavourable on the day. 

Cirillo is the highest earning thoroughbred in the country this season having won two expensive sales races down in Cape Town, including the CTS 1200 last time. He showed good speed there and then drew away in the manner of a top class sprinter.

He is only 1kg out at the weights with the best weighted male Bull Valley, but the latter is returning from a layoff of more than a year.

However, the low draws can sometimes be disadvantageous down the Turffontein straight, so the earlier races must be monitored for any draw bias.

Mardi Gras has not had the opportunity to rise above his current 100 merit rating, which he potentially looks to be better than. So being officially 4kg under sufferance with Bull Valley can’t be taken on face value. Furthermore, this progressive sprinter has a nice high draw. Prince Of Kahal has speed and some class. He should be running on as usual but his low draw might be a concern.

Green Plains has trained on and is consistent. She is the best weighted horse in the race according to official merit ratings. It is never easy against the boys but she has a nice high draw.

Romi’s Boy is a talented sprinter who ran a fine race last time after a five month layoff. He should be able to run well fresh again.

Trip To Heaven will be left alone as he is better when coming from way off the pace. He is drawn on the right side and if producing his best will be right there.

Bull Valley has a lot of class and has run well fresh before so could be a threat from a high draw.

Billy Silver has class and has run two good races on the Highveld so is capable of surprising from a nice high draw.

Red Chesnut Road was highly regarded early in his career and has found consistency lately from sprints up to a mile.

Down To Zero won a good race last time but the extra 160m might stretch him. They are selected in the order mentioned.

The Listed Drum Star Handicap over 1800m provides another opportunity for the quirky Pietro Mascagni. He is full of class but appears to shirk the issue when challenging for the lead. He is well drawn over an ideal trip and a tongue tie has now been fitted.

Cash Time is in good form but has a tricky draw considering first time blinkers are on.

The Dazzler is on the up and Dawn Assault and Hero’s Honour have earned their big weights.

The second race is an interesting Conditions Plate and although Redberry Lane would prefer further than this 1400m trip, she will be a threat from pole position as she is an effective front runner and is well in at the weights with all except Fresnaye, who might need her first run on the Highveld and would prefer further.

Celtic Sea is perfectly distance suited and there won’t be much between her and her stable companion Redberry Lane here.

By David Thiselton

Justin Snaith has a strong hand at Durbanville tomorrow, particularly in the first four races when he has three favourites and a joint favourite, and the champion trainer may win both the two-year-old events.

Cyber Blossom, already backed from 2-1 to 14-10 for the Tabonline Maiden Juvenile (race three), was good enough to run creditably in the Listed race on Met day and probably has most to fear from Mike Robinson’s 22-10 shot Stylish Icon and the Eric Sands-trained 7-2 chance Driving Miss Daisy who both made promising debuts last month.

Six of the other seven are first-timers and, while nine of the first 12 two-year-old races in Cape Town this season were won by newcomers, experience is beginning to count and all the last five races went to horses who had had a run.

Vaughan Marshall’s Captain Of Stealth aside, it is Candice Bass-Robinson who appears to have the strongest hand so far and riding arrangements point to Sanskrift, an R800 000 Duke Of Marmalade full sister to Santa Clara and half-sister to Horizon. “I think she is going to be a little bit too green, especially to take on those raced fillies,” says her trainer. “She could maybe run a place but she probably needs a little bit more time.”

Rio Querari is 17-20 for the first and, while the form of his debut hardly warrants him being odds-on, he looks marginally the best. The entire field was running for the first time and he was just one of four that were slowly away while the winner let the form down by managing only fourth ten days later. But Rio Querari did run on well and Richard Fourie has stuck with him.

All Black, fourth of six on debut when totally unfancied and hampered at the start, has been backed from 7-1 to 9-2. Hexatonic (22-1) and Pick Eight Captain are both R400 000 Captain Als and, with Brett Crawford’s juveniles getting into gear, the latter is probably the danger to the selection. Perhaps significantly, he has already been backed from 5-1 to 33-10 second favourite.

The Bass-Robinson stable introduces 25-1 shot Doppio Oro and Tree Of Wisdom (11-2) who has been nibbled at but his trainer feels he will need the run – “I think he will probably need the experience and that he is not wound up enough.”

Destin (7-10 with World Sports Betting) is rated 4kg the best in the mile Betting World Maiden but, while he is taken to beat 3-1 shot Var Express, it is more than  a little disturbing that his last two runs have been over ten furlongs and an extended mile and a half.

Blush Scarlet appeals at 5-1 in the TAB Telebet Maiden. The Glen Kotzen filly was badly drawn when only a fifth of a length behind second-placed Lip Service at Kenilworth last month and has much the better of the draw here.

By Michael Clower

Captain And Master has had his fair share of bad luck at Greyville, most notably when running into traffic in the Gr2 Golden Horseshoe on July day last season. Since then he has been campaigned at the top level by Sean Tarry, his last outing being in the Gr2 Hawaii Stakes where he was friendless in the market with favourite Soqrat all but home and hosed according to punters.

It turned out not quite that simple as Soqrat, in spite of turning in a tremendous performance, was not able to hold off the relatively unfancied six-year-old Zouaves. Captain And Master was also making late headway and beaten less than two lengths into fourth.

Tarry appears to have picked the right race for Captain And Master to score his second success this term when he lines up in the Morris Vee Sports Bet Progress Plate over 1400m on the Greyville turf on Sunday.

He does face some useful younger opposition, notably Marchingontogether and Mr Greenlight, so this will be no walk in the park for the Highveld raider.

Marchingontogether ran no sort of race in the Gauteng Guineas when tried in blinkers and Gavin van Zyl made no secret that he was expecting better when back on home turf.

His confidence was not misplaced as Marchingontogether held off the attentions of older stable companion Blackball, this over 1950m.

Marchingontogether does appear to be equally effective over Sunday’s shorter trip but given that this is Captain And Master’s optimum distance, the latter gets the nod.

One who could put them all to bed is Mr Greenlight. Nothing went right in his trip to Cape Town where all three of Duncan Howells’s runners on the day ran way below par. Prior to that Mr Greenlight had booked his place on the float to Cape Town with a thoroughly convincing victory in a Graduation Plate.

Mr Greenlight has had over a month to recover from his ill-fated trip south and needs to be included in all calculations.

Of the balance Affranchi has yet to find the promise that he showed earlier in his career and the filly Twice As Smart looks held by Mr Greenlight given her last outing where she started favourite but that was on the poly track and she could well prefer the turf.

KZN trainers have been relatively quiet as far as getting their two-year-olds up and running in comparison to their out-of-province counterparts, possibly a combination of barrier trials and many not wanting to push their young charges on the synthetic track on debut.

It’s turf on Sunday and the card opener is littered with runners that have trialled well and it is up to punters to test their skills at reading gallops and taking notes on the habits of trainers – because that is essentially what a barrier trial is.

Just how far behind or how far in front a horse finishes in a trial is immaterial. A trial needs to be gauged on individual showings, and what can be expected from different trainers. Some trainers make use of them as trial gallops, others as a shop window for horses that are up for sale and others just letting their charges go through the motions because the rules say they have to. Over time just how the ‘form’ of particular trials work out becomes apparent.

Seasoned trainer Dennis Drier is one of the shrewdest in his profession but Yessiricanboogie, a seven-length winner on debut, and Pearl Of Asia, a narrow winner at cramped odds in his debut, have rather compromised trial winner Ninotto.

From a pole position draw, Ninotto is likely to start at short odds in spite of the smart showings of Double Games, who simply cruised through his trial and may be the biggest threat to the selection, and the more experienced African Warrior and Chief Officer.

Let the games begin!

By Andrew Harrison