Last Winter is a surprise nomination for the Jet Master Stakes at Kenilworth’s Prawn Festival meeting on Saturday week but Dean Kannemeyer has made it clear that the Met runner-up will not run unless quarantine plans are knocked back.

He said on Saturday: “I am just waiting to hear that we have been given a slot in the quarantine station. I know that there are quite a few horses in there at the moment.”

The Jet Master was switched from its traditional Cape Guineas day slot in a bid to get more runners – there were only seven last season although there were 11 in the previous campaign – but just 12 were entered last Friday. Some trainers have pointed out that many otherwise eligible horses are being rested at the moment.

Milton is top-rated in the likely absence of Last Winter and Billy Prestage is hoping that Gavin Lerena (who bounced back by winning on his first three rides at the Vaal on Saturday) will come down to partner the six-year-old on whom the former champion won the Premier Trophy in December.

Joey Ramsden has won the Vasco Prix Du Cap five times in the past 13 seasons and his pair Just Sensual and Rose In Bloom are the highest-rated of the 14 entries for Saturday week’s 1 400m Grade 3.

Cape Guineas winner Tap O’Noth is reported 100% following his below-par effort in the Cape Derby – when some of the Vaughan Marshall string were suffering from a possible respiratory virus infection – and goes to Durban.

Marshall said: “You always wonder when you have something like that hanging over you but nothing showed up and we could find no sign of it with him. He is fine now and, while it is early days yet, possible targets are the Daisy Guineas (6 May) and the Rising Sun Gold Challenge (9 June).”

By Michael Clower

One was expected, two was a bonus, as Alistair Gordon left Scottsville a contented trainer yesterday.

Gauteng Guineas candidate Monks Hood did everything expected of him and more as he carved up a strong handicap field and while he may have been ignored in the Dingaan’s market he showed yesterday at the win is unlikely to be a flash-in-the-pan.

Anthony Delpech rode a super confident race on the gelding, coming from the tail of the field to mow down a game Redcarpet Captain, the winning margin belying the ease of victory.

Monks Hood (Candiese Marnewick)

Delpech was matter of fact after the race. “If I couldn’t beat these horses then I shouldn’t be going to Jo’burg to run in the Guineas,” he said. “I know there are one or two hard knockers there but we think a lot of this horse. But he had to win the way he won to have a chance in the Guineas.”

Brandon Lerena rode a super race on Redcarpet Captain, reserving his best for late, but his best was just not good enough as Monks Hood proved his superior.

“We know how to ride him now,” said Delpech. “Don’t ride him forward, ride him cold. He has a good turn of foot.”

Nominations for the Guineas close tomorrow and Gordon was holding out for a “good draw and good ground.”

“I don’t think he was quite suited to the soft going in the Dingaans. I think he will be a much better horse on good ground because it will suit his action.

“He’s always looked like a nice horse, but I think he has matured now, and I think he’s getting better. Today’s he wasn’t 100% and he should come on from this run.”

Not expected was sales-bound River Ayre who put a spanner in the works of many an exotic, paying over R17 for a win on the tote.

River Ayre has not been the easiest of customers at the start. “She got left quite badly at her last start, but the starter did a good job today and had a handler up with her.” Jumping on terms yesterday, she added a few extra rands to her sales price. “She’s up for sale on Tuesday. These things often happen,” concluded Gordon.

Robbie Hill has been through a couple of lean months recently but will have been well satisfied with the showing by his filly Everlasting Love. Switched to the turf after two modest efforts on the poly, she showed her rivals a clean pair of heels without Sean Veale needing to give much encouragement. “I think she’s better on the grass,” said Hill. “Her last two on the poly she didn’t settle and gave the jocks a bit of a torrid time.”

Veale was able to settle her in the box seat for much of the race and she extended smartly in the straight to win comfortably.

A late declaration of blinkers did the trick for Vision Of Trust who finally got off the mark for Paul Gadsby in the card opener. “I thought if blinkers and Anton Marcus can’t win then he will never win a race,” said Gadsby after Marcus had unleashed a winning run to snaffle favourite Great Dictator for owner/breeder and former Gold Circle Chairman Robert Mauvis.

Andrew Harrison

The Alistair Gordon-trained Monk’s Hood put up an excellent preparation for the Grade 2 Betting World Gauteng Guineas yesterday at Scottsville when winning a MR 96 Handicap over 1400m in effortless style under big race jockey Anthony Delpech.

There were also some good classic preparations put in by Johannesburg horses at the Vaal on Saturday.

Redcarpet Captain

Monk’s Hood showed himself to be a top class horse when winning the Grade 2 Investec Dingaans, despite having no cover for the entire length of the long Turffontein straight. He had a similar lack of luck from a wide draw in the Grade 1 Premier’s Champion Stakes over 1600m at Greyville as a two-year-old, where he stayed on for a close up fourth. The form of the latter race has been franked lately by the winner Eyes Wide Open, who won both the Grade 2 Peninsula Handicap over 1800m and the Grade 1 Investec Cape Derby. Yesterday Monk’s Hood swept past the field in the straight and won by 0,75 lengths from the older horse Redcarpet Captain without being put under pressure by Delpech. He ran off a 101 merit rating, but looks capable of rising to a higher mark.

At Turffontein on Saturday the classy Mike de Kock-trained Noble Secret thrashed his stablemate Alshibaa by 2,75 lengths in a MR 88 Handicap for three-year-olds over 1600m. He carried joint top weight of 60kg in only his third career start off a merit rating of 88 and it was his first start around the turn, so this big, rangy horse will make his presence felt in the classics.

In a MR 87 Handicap for three-year-old fillies over 1600m, the Alec Laird-trained Pale Lilac is a rangy sort who did well to hold on from the front, so she might be granted a berth in the Triple Tiara events. Second-placed Dressed To Impress is another to take out of the race as it was only her second career start. She did not know what it was all about and hit a flat spot at a crucial stage in the straight. However, when the penny dropped she produced a strong run, but it was too late.

The Mike Azzie-trained Frederico’s Dream has taken well to blinkers and showed exceptional pace throughout to win a MR 92 Handicap for fillies and mares over 1000m. She ran off an 87 merit rating and this three-year-old Gimmethegreenlight filly can continue to progress.

Later, Captain Aldo proved specialists over the in-between trip of 1400m can never be ignored and in a Pinnacle Stakes event he improved his record over this distance to six wins, six seconds and one third in just 15 attempts.

By David Thiselton

Joey Ramsden, at home recuperating from an operation on his shoulder, had just the tonic he needed when Dynasty’s Blossom won in a common canter at Kenilworth on Saturday.

Victory in the Birthday Bonanza Handicap was important because the Dynasty filly carries the famous Magnier dark blue and cost a whopping R4.5 million. True, she only raced off 78 but Robert Khathi led a furlong and a half from home and thereafter his most vigorous efforts were devoted to looking round to see where the hell the opposition had got to.

Joey Ramsden

Assistant Ricardo Sobotker said: “We put blinkers on her two races back because she had been disappointing but she probably doesn’t need them. It was more that she hadn’t strengthened up and it is only in the last couple of months that she has started to do so. Today she showed how good she is and there is a lot more to come.”

Alec Foster, sick for much of the last week, also had a victory tonic when his heavily supported homebred Racine made a winning debut under a confident M.J. Byleveld in the Maiden Juvenile Fillies. “She is a very nice sort who would prefer 1 200m,” commented Vaughan Marshall.

Dean Kannemeyer had his first Cape Town two-year-old winner of the season 35 minutes later when 6-1 newcomer Savea (Grant Behr) got the better of the more experienced Sailor Sam inside the last half furlong.

“I hadn’t tried him here or at Durbanville but he had shown a lot of natural speed at home,” said the trainer.

Richard Fourie (“The racing Gods were in my favour and I am on the right horses which makes a big difference”) stole much of the show with two winners for Glen Kotzen plus a last-gasp success on Commander Bond for Eric Sands who was convinced his rider was coming from too far back!

Golden Wine, the first of the two Kotzen winners, made all the running to earn a reprieve from owner-breeder Peter de Beyer who said: “She was on her final notice. Some horses respond to love but some more to threats and I’d said that if she didn’t win today she was going to PE!”

Seemingly Bwana also needs handling of a special nature – he pretty much expects everybody to doff their caps and call him sir – and both Corner Orffer and Brett Crawford (“he is not an easy horse”) have to treat him with kid gloves. But he has the necessary talent and he made it two out of three in the Riverside Boutique Hotel Handicap.

Some of those who religiously supported Grant van Niekerk in race after race ran out of ammunition before he finally got one on the board on Red Mars in the Snowdance colours in the last. The Met day maestro rode four favourites, two of them odds-on shots, and commented philosophically: “It just shows you have to take the bad days with the good ones and in the end I was just glad to get a winner.”

By Michael Clower

Monks Hood, winner of the Gr2 Dingaans at Turffontein back in November last year, warms up at Scottsville on Sunday when he takes on a competitive field of older runners in the Track & Ball Gaming Handicap.

With bigger fish to fry over the next few months, Alistair Gordon’s smart gelding is unlikely to be fully wound up and given the strength of the opposition a strong showing rather than guaranteed victory would be more than satisfying. That said, 1400m at this stage of his preparation is an ideal trip.

Monks Hood (Candiese Marnewick)

Gordon confirmed that Sunday’s race is a warm-up for the Gr2 Gauteng Guineas on March 3 where Monks Hood will return to the scene of his Dingaans victory.

But win lose or draw Monks Hood is unlikely to go for the Gr1 Classic over 1800m but return to KZN for Champions Season and the Gr2 KZN Guineas. “I think the Classic will be too far for him. At this stage I think 1600m is about his chop,” said Gordon.

Come Sunday, Gordon should know exactly where he is with Monks Hood as he faces some hard knockers including Redcarpet Captain from the in-form Mark Dixon yard.

The gelding’s last win was over course and distance when getting the better of Gr1 performer Seventh Plain and that was followed with a creditable third in the Christmas Handicap over the Greyville 1600m where he found Roy Hard Enough and subsequent Michael Roberts Handicap winner Wild Wicket a touch too sharp.

Doing It For Dan and Amazon King are others to note but if Monks Hood is caught short then Redcarpet Captain strikes as the most likely culprit.

Punters face another tricky card, the Gold Circle Podcast Handicap a race in point. Diamante, School Run and Diamond Noir all met last time out with a length separating the trio. The handicappers have tried to even out with winner Diamond Noir picking up a three-pound penalty and School Run one pound extra. The theory is that the three should dead-heat but that is as likely as Donald Trump serving a second term as US president.

Duncan Howells as two smart fillies in Sorceress and Emma’s Oracle and Greg Cheyne makes the trip all the way from Cape Town for one ride to honour his contract with Highlands Farm. It took Emma’s Oracle four runs to get off the mark but when she did it was in facile fashion. Second placed The Matador is still battling in the maidens but Emma’s Oracle still looks smart.

Sorceress came from the clouds when touched off by Miss Milanna at Greyville recently and with the wily Anton Marcus aboard may be the right one in what should be a tight finish.

By Andrew Harrison