William Longsword’s racecourse appearances will be strictly limited after he earned himself a lifetime lording it over a Klawervlei harem by storming home at 22-1 in Saturday’s Grand Parade Cape Guineas.

“I said to John Koster beforehand that this horse’s mission is the Guineas and, if he wins it, he will go back to you,” said Markus Jooste’s racing manager Derek Brugman. “He is one of the best looking horses you will ever see and he is a Captain Al half-brother to Real Princess so he has a stallion’s pedigree. From now on we will race him extremely sparingly with an eye to his stallion career.”

Brugman referred to “a magnificent training feat” on the part of Vaughan Marshall, doubtless thinking of the way the Milnerton handler boosted the horse’s confidence by bringing him back from a nasty over-reach in the Selangor to run away with a minor handicap just 11 days before the big race.

Marshall, winning his fourth Cape Guineas, jokingly brushed the compliment aside, saying: “Why should I have paid the racecourse for galloping him when they could pay me?”

It was eight years ago that MJ Byleveld won this on Le Drakkaar from a similarly wide draw and he slotted in his mount as smoothly as card dealer at the sponsor’s casino. “I had to commit early and fortunately I got there for nothing,” he related. “It was ideal having Table Bay just in front of me because I knew he was the horse to beat and, when we got to the 400m, I could see that he was under more pressure than I was. Once I went clear I knew it would take a good horse to come and beat me.”

For a few tantalising seconds Richard Fourie felt he was going to do just that on Gold Standard – “I thought I was going to get to him but then the winner went on again.”

He was beaten half a length and Glen Kotzen said: “We are happy with the result – cowboys don’t cry – but we sat handy because we thought they were going to try and turn it into a sprint, and so it proved with the time nearly three seconds slower than the Selangor. We are thinking of the Investec Cape Derby but we don’t rule out the Met.”

The decision to abandon well-publicised waiting tactics and make the running with 3-1 favourite Table Bay was the surprise of the race. A clearly disappointed Joey Ramsden would only say: “I don’t want to talk about it” but Anton Marcus said: “I thought mine had every chance. I waited and I nursed but as soon as I was challenged I knew.”

His mount was over three lengths back third with Elevated justifying Riaan van Reenen’s beliefs at 40-1 in fourth and Edict Of Nantes, last of all turning for home, running on into fifth but his fancied stable companion Craven, who returned minus a front shoe, beat only two home. “I had a hard race early and they squeezed me quite a bit,” Bernard Fayd-Herbe explained. “I had a good run into the straight but he then threw in the towel. I think it was all a bit early for him.”

Candice Bass-Robinson had her biggest win so far when Brian Finch’s Icy Trail and Grant van Niekerk just held on in the Sun International Premier Trophy but, despite also winning the last with Silver Master, she went home disappointed. “I had a frustrating day with too many seconds (five of them) and I still think Horizon should have got it in the boardroom.”

Van Niekerk lodged an objection after having to switch right and left as he finished best of all in the Grand Foods Jet Master, going under by a dwindling half-length to Fifty Cents on the Cape Derby-bound colt. It took the stipes almost 15 minutes to decide to leave the result unchanged (Ernie Rodrigues: “Grant never stopped riding and there was no loss of momentum”) but Fifty Cents also hampered Winter Prince (fourth) and Captain’s Flame (fifth). Rider Anthony Andrews faces an unenviable inquiry.

Justin Snaith, who trains the winner, won four of the first five and will run Varsfontein’s conditions race winner Bela-Bela in the Maine Chance Paddock Stakes on January 7 before deciding between the Met and the Majorca.

Anton Marcus, who was riding her for the first time, said: “This race was devoid of pace and she was clearly underdone but she lifted for me at the right time. Hopefully I will be able to stick with her.”

Silver Mountain, last until 300m out, was beaten less than a length and a half into fourth and also goes for the Paddock. “I’m not sure she stays 1 800m and the Majorca is her main mission,” said Mrs Robinson. “She came back into training quite late and has had a rushed preparation but this will bring her on.”

The Paddock closes on Friday, a fact not lost on Mike Robinson after Goodtime Gal (Fourie) proved three-quarters of a length too strong for Nightingale in the CTS Victress Stakes.

By Michael Clower

Fairview Monday (turf) selections by INForm

R1 No Slections

R2 (4) Oklahoma Sky (7) Beataboutthebush (1) Cup Cake

R3 (10) Imagine Dragons (4) Lunging Leopard (1) Lady Away

R4 (1) Main Attraction (2) Lookamee (4) Main Exchange

R5 (7) Blizzard King (4) Captain Disko  (3) Captains Vista

R6 (2) Star Burst Galaxy (6) Treize (9) Eternal Winter

R7 (8) Evening Storm (3) Soviet Cosmonaut (1) Just Too Early

R8 (6) Southern Sunset (2) Tracy’s Legacy (8) Audrie Do

PA (R128)

Leg 1: 4 x 7

Leg 2: 10 x 4

Leg 3: 1 x 2

Leg 4: 7 x 4

Leg 5: 2 x 6

Leg 6: 8 x 3

Leg 7: 6 x 2

PICK 6 (R1944)

Leg 1: 10 x 4 x 1

Leg 2: 1 x 2 x 4

Leg 3: 7 x 4 x 3 x 4

Leg 4: 2 x 6 x 9

Leg 5: 8 x 3 x 1

Leg 6: 6 x 2 x 8 x 9 x 13 x 15

JACKPOT (R108)

Leg 1: 1 x 2 x 4

Leg 2: 7 x 4 x 3 x 4

Leg 3: 2 x 6 x 9

Leg 4: 8 x 3 x 1

BEST BET

Race 2: 1

VALUE BET

Race 7: 1

Heavenly Blue has been marked out from 10-1 to 20-1 for the Sun Met after managing only ninth in Saturday’s Cape Guineas while Zodiac Ruler (13^th) has gone from 40-1 to 100-1.

Betting World has shortened runner-up Gold Standard from 28-1 to 20-1 and Table Bay Hotel winner Bela-Bela from 14-1 to 12-1 joint third favourite. Whisky Baron, who runs tomorrow, has also been clipped two points to 12-1 but Baritone has gone from 25-1 to 50-1 after finishing last in the Jet Master.

Marinaresco remains at the head of the market on an unchanged 17-10 with Legal Eagle next on 22-10.

Michael Clower

Sophomore form was in disarray yesterday when William Longsword (30-1) swung hard and fast under MJ Byleveld to decapitate his rivals in the Gr1 Grand Parade Cape Guineas at Kenilworth and give Vaughan Marshall his fourth win in the classic.

There were many question marks hanging over the opening Gr1 of the season but the first leaks in the form appeared when yesterday’s favourite Table Bay – ominously easy to back at 3-1 – took a hiding in the Selangor Cup when all were singing his praises after his facile victory in the Cape Classic.

Taken to the front by Anton Marcus, and leading into the final two furlongs, Table Bay was soon in trouble. Byleveld, tracking the leader and racing in the same Mayfair Speculator silks barring a red cap, picked his moment and powered past the tiring favourite.

Gold Standard, ahead of William Longsword in the Selangor, reversed the placings to gave the Guineas form some creditability.

Joey Ramsden was on record that Table Bay’s defeat in the Selangor was due to racing too handy so it was puzzling when Marcus bounced the gate and took Table Bay to set the pace with Byleveld sitting on his tail. Two furlongs out, Table Bay was out of puff, surrendering his lead as William Longsword whistled past.

It was not all plain sailing as Richard Fourie sent Gold Standard out of the pack to challenge but for all intents and purposes the race was over.

The expected Highveld challenge failed to materialise with both Singapore Sling and Heavenly Blue failing to fire while the KZN pair of Hack Green and Gunner were similarly disappointing.

Table Bay hung on to finish third ahead of a wall of horses.

The result was not unexpected as most pundits were divided on the form, so just how things pan out over the following six months will be interesting.

Earlier, Justin Snaith had made no bones that he has struggled to find a suitable comeback race for star filly Bela-Bela and the plan almost came unstuck in a slow-run Conditions Plate. To be fair Bela-Bela would not have been disgraced in defeat over a distance short of optimum but under a tremendous ride by Anton Marcus her class told and she goes into her Summer features with a good prep under her girth.

Off a desperate early gallop, Bela-Bela was lobbing along midfield but Marcus had all in hand and was in no hurry to make his move. He kept the grey covered for as long as his nerve held in the home straight and when he went for broke there will have been a few sweaty palms amongst the connections.

But the run was perfectly timed and in spite of the narrow winning margin, Marcus always seemed to have the result in hand.

Silver Mountain was never asked much, trailing the field for most of the race and trotting home – probably undone by the notorious ‘Cape Crawl’!

Andrew Harrison

Picture: Liesl King

Table Bay can prove his Selangor form all wrong by taking the Grand Parade Cape Guineas at Kenilworth tomorrow.

But it’s not a given and Anton Marcus’s mount faces some formidable challengers, notably Gold Standard and the Dingaans pair Singapore Sling and Heavenly Blue.

The jury – at least the handicappers and most punters – is still out on why the favourite ran so far below his Cape Classic best last time but Joey Ramsden has never wavered from his belief that his horse was too close to the pace in a race that was run too fast. This time A New Dawn will be asked to go even quicker so that Table Bay can be positioned further back.

Ramsden, who won this with Variety Club in 2011 and Act Of War two years ago, has on this occasion abandoned his usual practice of taking the horse to Kenilworth for his final gallop. “Table Bay had a hard race last time,” he explains. “So I have freshened him up and he has been doing well.”

Is the trainer afraid of anything else? “Not really, no,” he answers although the stats are not in his favour – six of the last eight Guineas favourites have been beaten.

Neither Glen Kotzen nor Richard Fourie has ever won this race but the pair are in inspired form and 7-1 chance Gold Standard has won his last three.  His trainer’s optimism is readily understandable – “Gold Standard’s times have improved like you can’t believe and I really do think he has a big shout.”

In the Dingaans Singapore Sling and Heavenly Blue raced almost together and pulled clear in the final furlong where Geoff Woodruff’s charge proved just over a length the better. Heavenly Blue has a bad draw yet – presumably because the Mike de Kock factor – he is the shorter of the pair at 13-2. That said, Singapore Sling’s chance is not helped by Gavin Lerena being ruled out after falling foul of the Hong Kong authorities.

Craven has been backed from 16-1 to 10-1 and he could have a better chance than Selangor runner-up Edict Of Nantes who is severely handicapped by a wide draw. “They have worked together, there is not much between them and Craven has been doing very well at home,” says Brett Crawford.

Africa Rising has been backed from 12-1 to 8-1 to give Sean Tarry another big race winner and it’s worth bearing in mind that S’Manga Khumalo’s mount was badly drawn when only sixth to stable companion Sage Harbour in the Lanzerac Ready To Run.

Zodiac Ruler is also in single figures with World Sports Betting despite a disappointing effort in the Lanzerac. “He got too far back and he couldn’t get a run up the short straight,” reckons Justin Snaith. “It will be a different story with the longer run-in although he still has to contend with a bad draw.”

Snaith also fancies 12-1 shot Bishop’s Bounty – “He was unlucky in the Ready To Run, he has been doing well and I think he is very underestimated. He is the dark horse of the race.”

Some punters reckon that Elevated is that and have already backed him from 50-1 to 33-1. He has been deliberately kept off the course since his second to Table Bay in the Classic. “He has blossomed at the right time,” reports Riaan van Reenen. “His draw (14) is a killer but if Greg Cheyne can overcome it I think he will be in the first four.”

Hack Green (16-1) has never raced beyond 1 200m (Dennis Drier: “On pedigree he should get the trip and I think he will”) but 14-1 Gunner’s Premier Champions win has not been enhanced by his two races since two while William Longsword is another who has to contend with a bad draw.

By Michael Clower