Candice Bass-Robinson said Dutch Philip was ready for the Cape Merchants to be run over 1200m at Kenilworth on Saturday but believed under handicap conditions it would be a difficult race.

Dutch Philip (Liesl King)

She said, “He has only had the one run but I think he has come on from it and won’t need it on Saturday. However, he has to give 2,5kg to a horse like Kasimir who has always finished close to him, so it is not going to be easy. It is a very open race.” Dutch Philip has the Diadem over 1200m and the Grade 1 Cape Flying Championship over 1000m on his program and will have a shout in both although 1000m is on the quick side for this classy son of What A Winter.

Bass-Robinson also has Tevez, Our Mate Art and Bernie in the Cape Merchants and she said, “Our Mate Art is doing very well. He has no proper distance as he doesn’t quite get a mile and is not an out and out sprinter but I am going to stick to sprints with him this season. Tevez is now a nine-year-old so you take what you get and he always runs well in the Merchants, but you can’t rely on him at this age. Bernie is under sufferance but I believe he is a fair sprinter. I think he will run well with bottom weight but whether he is good enough I’m not sure.”

Bass-Robinson would have given Majestic Mozart a big chance in the CTS Ready To Run Stakes over 1400m if it were not for his wide draw on the old course which has a short run in. “He is in good shape and is a decent horse.”

She said her Grade 2 Concorde Cup (1600m) contestant More Magic was “very well”, but feared he might be outclassed in a strong line up.

By David Thiselton

The Vaal meeting tomorrow is on the Outside track and the exotics look to be the way to play, although the earlier races must be monitored for any draw bias.

In the first leg of the PA over 1400m Eureka Effect has shown promise and being from the Stuart Pettigrew yard he should now be cherry ripe having his third run after a layoff and gelding. The most interesting runner here is the Mike de Kock-trained Anjom who is a big and classy looking son of the top Australian sire Snitzel, but he might still need another outing as the penny clearly had not dropped on the evidence of his first start and on jockey bookings his stablemate Naizak looks the yard elect. The latter was staying on for close finishes over 1000m and 1200m in his first two starts and should relish the step up in trip. However, Vontreo, who went close on debut is tipped to split Eureka Effect and Naizak as he made a fine debut from the widest draw of all over 1200m on the Inside track and should enjoy the step up in trip. Owlinthetree disappointed last time but is another one to consider having been unlucky when staying on over 1200m on debut.

Infamous Fox (Candiese Marnewick)

Against The Grain is selected as the best bet on the card and a Pick 6 banker in the first leg. He stayed on well for a close fourth in the KZN Yearling Sale Million on VDJ day over 1300m and the question was whether the 1160m of the Million Maiden on Charity Mie day was going to be too sharp. He duly only just failed after running on well. He has some class and should despatch this field. The De Kock first-timer Lasair by Var could prove to be the main danger, being a R650,000 half-brother to three stakes winners.

The first leg of the Jackpot is the classiest race on the day, an Assessment Plate over 1400m. Champion Jockey Lyle Hewitson will be aboard Aurelia Cotta, who looked to be going places after winning her first two career starts, both over this trip as a juvenile. She then became a touch disappointing but had a busy campaign as a three-year-old and her last two runs were fair efforts. She might have benefited from a layoff. She is 1,5kg under sufferance with Dagmar on official merit ratings. The latter finished a decent fourth in the Grade 1 Thekwini over 1600m last time out on Gold Cup day and this is the trip of her last win. Rock A Roll Dancer won well at the end of August having been beaten in two starts before that by promising sorts Nafaayes and In The Dance respectively. She should enjoy the step up in trip and might prove better than her current merit rating, although she is officially 5,5kg under sufferance wit Dagmar. Tamarina looks to be full of ability but clearly has issues as she has not raced for ten months having had a five month gap between her first and second starts. There is very little between Rock A Roll Dancer and Crimson Royale on a line through Nafaayes, so the latter must also be included.

A lot will depend on how the draws are panning out on the day in the sixth race as Infamous Fox makes appeal but has a low draw, which used to be a disadvantage on this track. He is a classy sort who was inconvenienced by a tough draw last time out in the Charity Mile and he could resume winning ways. Doosra at one stage looked to be most promising but then began disappointing. However, blinkers have given him a new lease of life and his class is evidenced by his close third in the Charity Mile. He is a must include and so is Catkin. The latter did well in first time blinkers last time and should be cherry ripe over an ideal trip.

In the seventh over 1600m Daffiq should enjoy the 100m step down in trip having found no extra over 1700m last time. This former De Kock-trained horse has always had class and can gain an overdue third career win. Classify was making late headway over 1450m last time so is interesting over this trip and Lone Survivor, who has won three out of six career starts, should enjoy the step up to this trip and has Gavin Lerena aboard. The risk averse can also consider the always dangerous Jubilee Line as well as Nordic Rebel and the big horse Visigoth, who has dropped to a competitive mark.

The eighth over 1200m is a fillies and mares sprint handicap, which are usually nightmares but there are three stand outs here. Ulla was not disgraced last time over 1100m to the exciting In The Dance and that was not the first time she had acquitted herself well against good types. Rock Pigeon won her penultimate start when under sufferance and then waltzed in last time, so is on the up. Madamoiselle is also on the up and now tries a step up in trip. Che Bella and Nicky Noo can also be included in the Pick 6 as the former was highly tried as a juvenile after an easy win and the latter had fair form in the strong centre of Cape Town and looks to have a reasonable merit rating.

In the last race over 1000m Effortless is chosen as the value bet on the day and a PA banker as he has done well from tough draws in his last two starts over this trip. However, it is an open race and punters should attempt to go wider if able to afford it. Seventh Son, Certifiable, Alex The Great, Nitro Charge and Moggie Brown make most appeal of the rest.

By David Thiselton

Sand And Sea, cut from 12-1 to 7-1 for the Cape Merchants after his impressive return in the Tab Telebet Progress Plate, is not a certain runner at this stage and punters should hold fire until Dennis Drier clarifies the position.

Drier said after last Saturday’s race: “It is a great pity that the Merchants is only a week away. We will see how Sand And Sea comes out of this race and then decide.”

Dennis Drier (Nkosi Hlophe)

The four-year-old was a revelation. This was his first appearance for seven months – after being gelded and having an operation on his wind – yet he travelled well throughout and swept clear inside the final furlong to win comfortably.  Significantly Anton Marcus said: “He is probably even better than this. His engine is still there, and he is willing and able.”

This was the trainer’s fourth Cape Town winner in three meetings but 16-10 favourite Pleasedtomeetyou switched off as abruptly as an Eskom outage after making the running at a decent clip and he finished with only one behind him.

Andre Nel said later in the afternoon: “The horse is sound but we had a couple during the week who started coughing.”

Candice Bass-Robinson was adamant after Nous Voila’s flop in the Western Cape Fillies Championship that the reason was the horse’s inability to handle the turn, and the filly proved her point by making all under Corne Orffer to floor the odds laid on WCFC runner-up Temple Grafin in the fillies Progress Plate. She started at 10-1 but you could have got 14-1 on course earlier in the afternoon.

“Nous Voila throws out a leg and as a result she doesn’t go well round a turn.” said her trainer, reflecting that Dutch Philip is much the same. “We will keep her up the straight and I think she can win a Group race.”

Glen Kotzen had originally intended to go straight for the Fillies Guineas with Temple Grafin but the decision to put the race back a fortnight threw his calculations and he is now glad it did. “The gap between races would have been too big but this was typical second run (after a rest) – she didn’t kick,” he explained. “I’m not unhappy and now we’ve just got to crack a draw next month.”

He was even less unhappy when the ear muff-fitted Expedite won the next under Craig Zackey, but not as delighted as Mike Stewart after Beethoven came good under an inspired Donovan Dillon in the opener to give the Noordhoek trainer an overdue first success of a hitherto frustrating season.

By Michael Clower

At Kenilworth on Saturday Justin Snaith successfully defied Cape Town convention that loose horses are automatically scratched – and more trainers seem likely to follow his example in future, particularly when they realise that they are not going to be condemned for anything from cruelty to incompetence.

When Ladder Man unseated Richard Fourie as he was being loaded into the pens for the mile maiden the favourite galloped loose back to the parade ring.  Snaith rushed off to meet both the horse and the course vet who he knew would be waiting with her metaphorical red pen poised.

He said: “We had already told the public that this was one we thought had a big chance and I didn’t want to take a fresh horse home – owners pay a lot of money to keep them. The course vet said she was happy with him and that he would be checked again at the start.”

Ladderman was trotted back riderless by a groom, passed the second inspection, loaded without problem and duly won the race to initiate a treble for Snaith and Fourie who ended a most satisfactory day on the 50-winner mark.

There were suggestions that the resultant 15-minute delay could see the trainer in hot water in the boardroom but acting senior stipe Nick Shearer implied that there was never any question of this while Snaith pointed out: “The horse was favourite and so, even if he had been scratched, there would had to have been a delay to allow punters to adjust their bets.”

Shearer added: “It is the course vet’s call whether a loose horse runs, the only exception being when the vet passes the horse fit but the trainer then says he (or she) does not want the horse to run.”

There have even been cases of fancied horses in Group 1 races, even classics, being scratched after getting loose and galloping back. However there is a school of thought, perhaps more prevalent outside South African than in it, that horses (like some human athletes) can benefit from a sharper warm-up than they get from the normal canter down to the start.

By Michael Clower

Featured Image: Richard Fourie (Liesl King)

The relationship between the Vodacom Durban July and the ground-breaking South African Riding for the Disabled Association (SARDA) in Summerveld stretches back more than ten years and the annual donation from Africa’s Greatest Horseracing Event has helped change the lives of the young boys and girls that ride at the equestrian centre outside Hillcrest every week.

Spearheaded by  Tracey Cumming and her team of volunteers, SARDA caters for schools in the greater Durban area that care for children with a wide variety of physical and mental challenges, using the closely supervised rides to offer each child individualised therapy sessions at the Ridgetop Equestrian Centre.

The rides aim to provide for each child’s unique physical, cognitive, emotional and sensory integration needs and under the guidance of their senior instructors, each youngster is guided through a series of fun exercises, each with a specific goal in mind that will contribute to improving their physical conditioning or mental cognitive ability.

Through support from Lotto and a variety of corporate donors and their annual donation from the Vodacom Durban July SARDA has been able to expand its operations to include a vast covered riding arena that enables them to offer daily rides irrespective of the weather, and a new sensory trail, while still covering all its costs of stabling, feeding and caring for its horses.

“There is an obvious synergy between the Vodacom Durban July and the inspiring work that SARDA does,” said Gold Circle’s Graeme Hawkins. “We pack into Greyville Racecourse to watch the best thoroughbreds in the country racing for the premier crown in African horse racing, and then see horses making such a profound impact on the lives of these young men and women.

“It is a pleasure and privilege to be able to channel some of the proceeds from the Vodacom Durban July to SARDA each year and to share the many touching stories of how these weekly rides impact on their lives,” he added.

SARDA relies heavily on donations and the time of volunteers to offer these weekly rides. Any interested parties can reach them through www.sardadurban.org.za

By Dave Macleod