The Vaal Outside track had a draw bias towards the outside last time they ran here but the early races must be monitored in tomorrow’s eight race meeting as the bias has varied over the last year or so.

The meeting does not look to be a difficult one for punters on paper.

The first leg of the PA is an Assessment Plate over 1200m and Prince Of Kahal is tipped to win despite being 6kg under sufferance with the filly Shufoog on official merit ratings. Prince Of Kahal has always been well regarded and has shown glimpses of class. He was unlucky in the Grade 2 Drill Hall Stakes against some of the top horses in the country. He has now been gelded and this trip should be ideal. Hakeem looks to be the Mike de Kock stable choice on jockey bookings. This disappointing sort has the plum standside draw in the small field of six and he could have benefitted from his six month layoff, being a son of Redoute’s Choice who is now a four-year-old.

Viking Trail (JC Photographics)

Shufoog has only had four starts but after an easy win on debut went close to the like of Just Sensual and Speedpoint over 1000m. She hasn’t raced since January but should get away with it over this trip. Rule The Night is an imposing sort and won well last week, heralding a return to his best after some disappointing runs. If he can continue progressing the right way he can make his presence felt. Mr Flood was an easy winner on debut but then disappointed in the SA Nursery. He will likely need this run. All About The Bass has impressed on more than one occasion but after a good win on August 16 on the Vaal Classic track he was asked to run at Flamingo Park four days later and after not striding out ran poorly.

In the first leg of the Pick 6 over 1200m punters should only have to include the two form horses, Las Salinas and Parental Control, and the blinkers-strike Landela, who has been supported in all of her starts and now drops back in trip. They can also consider two interesting first-timers. Rudhra’s Eye is a R50,000 filly by the promising sire Pomodoro and is a half-sister to Grade 3 Godolphon Barb runner up Fly At Em. Over The Limit is an R800,000 filly by Twice Over out of a National Emblem Listed winner who has produced a Listed winner.

A first-timer makes most appeal in the next race over 1400m, which is also an uninspiring maiden. Mike de Kock introduces Zaberjad, an Australian-bred gelding by Dawn Approach. He is a half-brother to the Grade 2-winning De Kock-trained Mushreq and would not have to be a star to win this race. Of the raced runners Philos is a typically big and rangy son of Philanthropist and after overcoming the widest draw of all over this trip on the Turffontein Inside course last time out he was not disgraced at all in finishing a 4,2 length eighth as it has turned out to be a strong form race. He has since been gelded so can improve further. Lunico was slow away on debut over 1200m on the Vaal Classic track and after initially being outpaced in the straight was staying on strongly, so will relish the step up in trip. The form of that race is not vintage so It Must Be Fate and Ice Eater can also be considered for the Pick 6 and Jackpot.

In the next race the well regarded Pietro Mascagni is a shoe-in at the weights, being 6kg better off than any other horse on official merit ratings. He should have strengthened during his seven months layoff and as he finished just 1,8 lengths behind Surcharge in the Gauteng Guineas he should be too strong for this field. His three-year-old stablemate Viking Trail won second time out over 1450m and will relish the step up in trip so is the one to side with for those looking for an upset.

In the sixth race Winter’s Forge was well weighted in a 1600m event last time out and held on. She will much prefer this 1200m trip, so can follow up. The best weighted horse is Rings And Things, who finished third in the CTS 1600, thus displaying her class. However, she has been a touch disappointing since then. She is also drawn on the wrong side by trends and would likely prefer further. Free And Easy has to be considered despite being 8.5kg under sufferance with Rings And Things on official merit ratings as she is an eyecatching sort who returned from a five month layoff last time over this trip and beat a good field.

The last leg of the Jackpot is a MR 66 Handicap for fillies and mares and Quebec Queen is tipped to win it from a plum high draw by trends. She ran on well last week over 1450m on the Vaal Classic track for second and before that ran a fair race against the boys. Kissmeinmydreams has improved and went close first time out the maidens against some useful male handicappers over this trip so she will be a lively runner here back against her own gender. Get Your Grove On always looked to have promise and proved it when returning from a layoff to smash a maiden field over this trip last time. Against her is topweight, albeit off a reasonable 68 merit rating, and a low draw. Rock Pigeon has useful sprint form recently and should enjoy this step up in trip on pedigree, so this lightly raced four-year-old can go close from a standside draw. Ponchielli drops back to the trip of her good win at the beginning of the month and also has to be included.

The last race over 1400m should be fought out by Virginia and Seville Orange, both of whom caught the eye on debut and will be distance suited at this stage.

By David Thiselton

Grant van Niekerk made a sensational start to his Hong Kong venture at Sha Tin yesterday, landing a first and last race double.

He won on his first ride, 73-20 chance Triumphant Jewel in the opening Harcourt Handicap. He was then unplaced on four rides before teaming up with the Tony Millard-trained World Record in the concluding Albert Handicap. The gelding drifted out to 162-10 just before the off and seemed to have no chance when sitting in last place for much of the way.

But Van Niekerk had other ideas. He got the horse running into the bit going into the final turn and, as he rounded it, he asked his mount to race in earnest. The gelding fairly ate up the ground to pip the favourite Rattani in the last half stride and win officially by a nose.

Grant Van Niekerk

Hong Kong owners, and therefore trainers, are notoriously fickle with so much depending on whether the jockeys are considered lucky. After this performance Van Niekerk’s name will be top of the popularity charts. He and Callan Murray (who had to be content with a half-length second from five mounts) were well supported by Millard and fellow South African trainer David Ferraris.

At Durbanville on Saturday the unbeaten Rainbow Bridge and Pleasedtomeetyou will both miss the 1 250m Pinnacle.

Eric Sands was unable to get permission to gallop the Winter Guineas and Winter Classic winner at Kenilworth on Saturday so Rainbow Bridge won’t be ready – “He takes quite a lot of sharp work until he is fit.” The Milnerton trainer still has the Matchem on October 7 on the agenda but he wants the horse to first prove that he is ready enough and that he will handle the course.

Andre Nel, who also has La Favourari and Percival in the Pinnacle, said: “Pleasedtomeetyou will either wait for a handicap at Durbanville on September 11 or the Fairview Wine Sophomore Sprint there four days later.

“Everything about him says that he will get further but Querari’s offspring have caught me out before and so I will run him over 1 200 or 1 250m next and see how he goes.”

Nel lost his appeal against the impressive debut winner’s 92 merit rating and both the adjudicators and the handicappers will be patting themselves on the back after the way Trip To The Sky, beaten over seven lengths into third, emphatically franked the form at Kenilworth on Saturday.

No specific plans have yet been made for Whisky Baron after his encouraging  return at Goodwood nine days ago but Ridgemont racing manager Craig Carey expects last year’s Met winner to run quite soon because autumn is approaching in England and Whisky Baron doesn’t act in the soft.

Piet Botha, who had his first runner as a trainer on Saturday – the pace-setting Head Of The Pack who was sixth to Trip To The Sky- broke his right ankle in a fall when riding work and arrived at Kenilworth on crutches.

By Michael Clower

Jack Mitchell and Nick Jonsson, who combined with Bernard Kantor to win the July with Do It Again, may have struck gold a second time.

Certainly their decision to buy Crown Towers out of a Markus Jooste dispersal at Durbanville looks a good one. The Australian-bred had some of those closest to him reaching for predictions -Richard Fourie: “He is going to the top” and Jonathan Snaith: “He will be a serious horse” – after the powerful way he drew clear of his rivals on debut at Kenilworth on Saturday.

Justin Snaith

The colt is bred in the purple, being by triple classic winner Camelot out of a Galileo mare who won five races, and he cost Jooste A$280 000 (then almost R2.8 million) at the 2017 Melbourne Premier. The present owners paid R1.7 million for the colt at the Central Route Trading sale in July.

Justin Snaith said: “The owners saw him at the sale and said they had to have him. We haven’t done a lot with him since so this was quite impressive.”

Snaith’s decision to adopt a far more patient approach with his two-year-olds last season, and so avoid the high ratings that so many juvenile winners prove unable to live up to, is making his three-year-old maidens a formidable proposition and Trip To The Sky’s rivals in the St Dalfour were simply unable to live with him in the final furlong despite some concern from the man on top.   “He was gasping for air the last bit but I did go a bit soon on him,” said Fourie.

The champion trainer and his jockey won four of the first five races and the Settlers Trophy at Durbanville on September 23 is next on the agenda for Magnificent Seven who made it four wins from his last five starts when comfortably leading throughout the Pravda Vodka Open Handicap.

But Nordic Breeze’s strong run to lead over 100m out in the Protea Toyota Bellville Conditions Plate was her swansong as she is to be retired to stud. Her first mate is, according to Oliver Foulkes, to be decided over several glasses of red wine “and the stallion we can remember the next morning is the one she goes to!” An early, and considerably more sober, assessment apparently makes Twice Over favourite.

The Snaith fancy that got away was Without Limits in the Carl Greaves Brokers Work Riders Maiden. Star stable rider Levis Kuse proved unable to weigh out at or near the required weight and the stipes suspended him for one race as a result. The change of rider came too late to be included on the yellow Card Changes Report and many of those who backed the filly from 13-10 to odds-on were unaware of the switch until after they had seen the hotpot drop away in the final furlong.

Lungisani Geledu, who has been with Vaughan Marshall for more than seven years, made all on 11-1 shot Double Rosie and the stable doubled up with the MJ Byleveld-ridden Potawatomi in the last.

Joey Ramsden’s vaccination nightmare is apparently almost over. Although Made In Hollywood had to be withdrawn after yet another dirty trach wash, Fours A Crowd got up in a blanket finish under Fransie Herholdt to spring an 18-1 surprise in the Infiniti Insurance Handicap. “We have gone very easy with the horses in the last two weeks but they are coming right and we are almost there,” said assistant Ricardo Sobotker.

By Michael Clower

After 30 successful years of training Ivan Moore has decided to retire and take up a more passive role in his recently licensed grandson’s yard. Young Darryl Moore struck up a partnership with his grandfather but has now taken the plunge and gone on his own. Darryl is extremely grateful to his grandfather for all the support and guidance he has given him over the years.

Moore said that this had enabled him to step up and take the yard to the next level. Ivan will still be active in the yard and Darryl will be able to call on his expertise at any time. “I do believe that I have youth, experience and a huge amount of passion and hopefully this will bring new owners into the yard as well as the racing industry,” said Moore.

“I have a solid base of current owners and would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their continued support and trust in me. I look forward to growing the stable along with my grandfather,” he added.

Moore stated that he was excited for the great things still to come. He was also an assistant for many years to the now retired Charles Laird and Darryl’s father, Robert, is the chief riding master of the South African Jockey Academy. He is based in Gauteng. Two of the stables shining stars are, Ballymaine and Unbelievable Lad and there is no doubt that when racing is in your blood, it is in your blood!

By Warren Lenferna

Featured Image: Newly licenced, young Summerveld based Trainer Darryl Moore  with one of his stable stars, Ballymaine. Moore is looking at taking his yard to the next level with the guidance of his recently retired grandfather Ivan and he is excited for the yards future.

Image by Candiese Marnewick

Scottsville turned up three gems yesterday and if you have a notebook of horses to follow, add Solid Gold, In The Stars and Thanksgiving to a list of horses that look headed for the top.

Master Of My Fate was not the easiest of horses to train as Dennis Drier will attest to and he appears to have passed on both his ability and temperament to In The Stars. Master Of My Fate stands at Varsfontein Stud and the filly races in the stud’s silks.

Seemingly hopelessly left at the start of the second race, she made up ground relentlessly. “When we got left five lengths, I thought I would just ride her for a place,” confided Sean Veale. “But going through the 500 I knew it was race over. I just had to find the right gaps.”

Captain’s Girl (Candiese Marnewick)

Well Veale’s name could have been Moses as the field opened up like the Red Sea and In The Stars simply cruised home.

“She’s not easy but she’s not a dilly filly. In her barrier trial she was well behaved until she got to the pens,” explained Drier. She was promptly hopelessly left which accounted for her seemingly poor trial.

“I rate this filly very highly. Her work at home has been phenomenal and I think she has a bright future.”

Duncan Howells expressed similar sentiments about the Dave MacLean-owned colt Thanksgiving in the Soccer 6 Maiden. Drawn wide, Muzi Yeni allowed the big-striding son of Dynasty to use his action and with a clear run to the line Thanksgiving won in the manner of a decent horse.

“I knew that I had a good horse coming to the races today and with a bit of luck he would pull it off for us,” said Howells. “Like all Dynasty’s he’s maturing and starting to come on nicely.”

Yeni had little more to do than keep his mount out of trouble and his mind on the job without using his stick as Thanksgiving was still green. “He’s a scopey horse. He takes time to get rolling so he should be well suited to a track with a long run-in like Turffontein.”

The third on the list of horses to follow got home by the smallest of margins but Solid Gold won like a good horse as apprentice Ashton Arries gave him a tremendous ride, coming from off the pace to snatch victory on the line.

“He’s a bit of a handful,” said Michael Roberts, rolling up his sleeve to reveal a bite-sized bruise on his bicep. “He’s not nasty, just playful.”

“He’s a horse that should go a mile easily but he shows a lot of pace. I was looking for a 1200 for him but because he shows so much pace I took a chance over the 1000.

Solid Gold has the pedigree for a mile and further and the fact that he was able to win over 1000m is usually a sign of a good horse.

By Andrew Harrison