Evie’s Light could be worth a chance at 5-1 in a big field for the opening Fillies Maiden Juvenile at Kenilworth today.

Greg Ennion’s filly is better than last time’s six-length third would suggest – she got worked up when loading and went over backwards – but her previous run puts her bang there and Greg Cheyne is a bonus.

“Something happened at the back of the stalls – I don’t know what but she is not like that,” says Ennion who had a two-year-old winner on Saturday. “It affected her performance badly and she now gets frightened – not of the pens but when she is behind them. However she worked very well on Saturday.”

Greg Cheyne (Liesl King)

Sharing 5-1 second favouritism with World Sports Betting yesterday was the Brett Crawford newcomer First Swallow, a R525 000 Kahal filly out of the Danehill Dancer mare Acquavella who is a half-sister to a French Group 1 winner. The fact that Corne Orffer is on her in preference to Love Dove (who has a definite chance and has been backed from 7-1 to 9-2 favouritism) is a significant pointer.

But this is a very open race. Seemingly, though, not too much should be read into Bernard Fayd’Herbe partnering 11-2 shot Tough Love rather than going for the more obvious claims of Sassy Lady (13-2).

“There is really nothing between them but Tough Love is difficult so Bernard rides her,” explains Jonathan Snaith, adding: “Tough Love does have ability and could pop up.”

Another to note is the Trippy filly Arctic Siren (8-1) because Candice Bass-Robinson’s first-timers have a better strike rate than most.

Colour Magic is 22-10 favourite for the mile handicap (race two) and stable companion Tonya next best at 28-10. The victory of Cortada on Saturday suggests that Vaughan Marshall is putting his recent virus attack behind him.

Marginal preference, though, is for Katie’s Jay (33-10) as she has been dropped a kilo for last time’s run when she had valid excuses – she lost ground at the start and was tightened for galloping room.

Dark Chocolate (backed from 13-2 to 5-1 yesterday) was raised three points after getting up in the last 100m in a big field and Sublime Lady (5-1) dropped the same amount while Fayd’Herbe’s mount Petty Officer (also 5-1) returns after a three and a half month absence. “She had a break and I want to run her in the Ladies Mile,” says Ennion. “This is the only suitable prep but she is working very well.”

The consistent Apollo Star was brushed inwards when starting favourite against older horses last time and the Ramsden gelding should collect at around 2-1 in the Tablonline.co.za Maiden Juvenile.

A line through Miss Katalin suggests that 5-2 chance Daring Miss may beat 19-10 favourite Heart Of A Legend in the Racing Association Maiden.

By Michael Clower

SECOND DECLARATIONS
29 MAY 2017

Declarations: 36

9 Horses scratched at 2^nd declarations

Secret Captain

Copper Pot

Fort Meyers

Bold Viking

Bi Pot

Deo Juvente

Rocketball

Prince Of Wales

Jubilee Line

PLEASE NOTE:

• Final Supp. Entries: Close 11:00 Monday, 12 June 2017
• Weights Published: Tuesday, 13 June 2017
• Final Declaration: Close 11:00 Monday, 19 June 2017
• Final Field and Draw: Announcement of the Final Field and Barrier Draws will take place on Tuesday, 20 June 2017
• Public Gallops:  7am at Greyville Racecourse, Thursday, 22 June 2017

Justin Snaith has declared both Zodiac Ruler (Bernard Fayd’Herbe) and Copper Force (Richard Fourie) for the Daily News 2000 at Greyville on Saturday. The pair were third and fourth to Janoobi in the Daisy Guineas.

He won the Grade 1 with Legislate three years ago and Fourie’s mount went on take the Vodacom Durban July. He also sent out last year’s runner-up It’s My Turn who went on to finish fourth in the July.

His Daisy Fillies Guineas winner Gimme Six will again be ridden by Anthony Delpech in the Woolavington 2000 while Fourie partners Captain Splendid in the Lonsdale Stirrup Cup. Joey Ramsden has supplemented Macduff for this 2 400m Grade 3.

By Michael Clower

Seemingly Aldo Domeyer has news for the medical profession. He himself might have been prescribed physiotherapy, biokinetics and chiropractics but for a jockey nothing is a better tonic than winners.

After riding six on Saturday (for the second time this year) he couldn’t feel an ounce of pain in his troubled back – just elation and satisfaction, particularly given his belief that Dutch Philip and Magical Wonderland seem sure to add to his tally in future features.

Aldo-Domeyer

Both the Cape Of Good Hope Nursery and the Kenilworth Fillies Nursery suffered from a well-nigh funereal pace – they were run over a second slower than the work riders’ maiden – but each time Domeyer’s mounts answered their rider’s every call.

“I was a little bit lacking in confidence with Dutch Philip because he hadn’t felt quite himself during the week and I don’t think he was at his best here,” he related. “But he has so much class that he managed to pull it off and he is a horse who is going to continue to improve.

“When I won on Magical Wonderland last time I said she was a bit better than that and Saturday’s race proved that. She really impressed me and coming to the last two furlongs I had so much horse under me. What I like about her is that every time I ask her for something she has an answer.”

Plans for both What A Winter horses are fluid. Candice Bass-Robinson, watching from Scottsville, said: “Dutch Philip could possibly run in the Langerman – he only got going at the end – but I haven’t decided. If he doesn’t he will have a break.

“I’m not sure that the filly will get further than sprint distances so she will probably have a rest. I won’t run her in the Irridescence.”

Five of the six Domeyer winners came in the last five races and by the end Midtown Manhattan was almost as inevitable as Churchill at The Curragh and was backed accordingly, from 6-1 to 22-10 favourite. His rider duly gave a whole new meaning to the phrase service delivery.

Platinum Prince won the 1 800m handicap like a horse on the up – he had also won his previous start – but the Snaiths intend to let him work his way through the handicap rather than step him up in class.

“There is an option to go for the Winter Derby which I think could have a small field and be a weak race,” said Jonathan Snaith. “But to take a well-handicapped horse like this and stick him in at level weights wouldn’t make much sense.”

Wildlife Safari, who drifted from 16-1 to 36-1, served up the shock of the day under Akshay Balloo in the 1 200m handicap. The Eric Sands-trained gelding is part-owned by 37 Maine Chance grooms but sadly the transport of those coming to the course was late leaving and they had got no further than Kuils River by the time the race was run. They watched it on their cell phones.

It is not so long ago that Jason Smitsdorff was a highly sought-after apprentice with a good future in front of him but apparently most of those trainers who were so keen on him didn’t want to know when his claim was gone – and until Saturday he was heading for a winnerless season of little more than 50 rides.

A work-riding opportunity at the Andre Nel winner factory – grabbed with both hands over two months ago -looks like putting the 24-year-old back on the right road as he showed when Hall Of Fame finished like a rocket to make a winning debut in the Racing Association Maiden.

By Michael Clower

Dennis Drier equaled a feat achieved by his famous Uncle Syd Laird on Saturday at Scottsville by winning the same Gr 1 race for the seventh time.

Sand And Sea (Nkosi Hlophe)

The exciting Twice Over colt Sand And Sea landed “Uncle Den” his seventh Gold Medallion, which is currently sponsored by Tsogo Sun. “Uncle Syd’s” seven-up was more celebrated as he did it in the Durban July and thereby set a record in the big race which still stands.

However, the most impressive part of Drier’s achievement is that of the eight renewals of the Gold Medallion this decade he has won six of them.

His first Medallion victory was way back in 1990 with Spook And Diesel and since then he has won it with Link Man (2010), Potent Power (2012), Captain Of All (2013), Guiness (2014), Seventh Plain (2015) and now Sand And Sea.

Of those horses, Captain Of All went on to win two further Gr 1s and Seventh Plain one. Captain Of All landed the Tsogo Sun Sprint and the Mercury Sprint as a four-year-old, having missed most of his three-year-old season. Seventh Plain won his next race, the Gr 1 Golden Horseshoe over 1400m at Greyville.

Sand And Sea could by all accounts go on to further Gr 1 success. He took a while to find his stride on Saturday. This didn’t overly concern Anton Marcus, not surprisingly, as the rangy colt was travelling ominously well in behind the field. When he switched him out it was race over in a matter of strides as the colt’s big action saw him making up the ground easily to win going away by 2,25 lengths from Varallo and Al Mariachi.

He looks likely to go a mile this season.

Sand And Sea was bred by Drakenstein Stud and is owned by Bernard Kantor, Jack Mitchell, Marsh Shirtliff and Mayfair Speculators.

Markus Jooste, of Mayfair Speculators was the outright owner of all of Captain Of All, Guiness and Seventh Plain, while Anton Marcus rode all of those in the Medallion with the exception of Captain Of All.

By David Thiselton