Kenilworth Racing and Phumelela are to adopt a more flexible approach to race programming in a bid to meet trainers’ concerns about the shortfalls of the present system.

Phumelela boss Clyde Basel said: “We are going to review the programme every two months, see which races are filling, which are not and why they are not. We can then tinker with the programme and make the necessary changes.

“Cape racing is fantastic and we want to keep it that way. The trainers are keen to increase the number of runners per race and we want to put things in place to enable them to do this.”

Eric Sands, one of those at the forefront of the call for change, said: “This will help – and we certainly can’t afford to give away any more of our racemeetings to another centre – but it can’t be done without also having an up-to-date horse census each time.

“Derek Brugman has suggested to me that we should go to each trainer each month, ask him or her what horses they have to run, the type of horse and the distances they are looking for – and that is a good suggestion.”

By Michael Clower 

Picture: Eric Sands (hamish NIVEN Photography)

A number of good horses are turning out at tomorrow’s KZN meeting, which has been moved from Scottsville to Greyville, and some of them like the much talked about Royal Life will be returning from long layoffs.

Trainer Alistair Gordon said Royal Life would definitely need his outing over the too sharp 1200m of the sixth race.

The gelding was bought into the Gordon yard as a three-year-old just over a year ago after an impressive six length win over 1600m in his second career start.

However, he had a few initial hiccups and then contracted a serious virus after being gelded.

This run will get him going again, but he is looking for a lot further.

Gordon also brings back classy sorts in Monte Christo, Beat The Retreat and Sublime Code.

Monte Christo finished lame last time over 1600m on the day the jockeys protested about the Scottsville turn (December 20), so has had to be brought back to fitness.

Gordon said, “He is fit and well and put up a good gallop on Monday. He is talented and I hope for a good run, although he might just need it.”

The good looking Trippi colt should love running fresh over the 1400m course and distance of the Novice Plate event and is tipped to win.

Beat The Retreat by Argonaut has a fine record down the Scottsville straight and has never run on the poly before. However, he should be right there in the seventh, a competitive MR 97 Handicap over 1200m.

Gordon said, “He has been gelded and it’s made a big difference. He has been working nicely. It might be a bit sharp for him now, but I expect him to run a nice race.”

Sublime Code, a three-year-old by Warm White Night, has his second run after gelding in the last, a MR 77 Handicap over 1200m.

Gordon would have obviously preferred the race to have been at Scottsville, as he said, “He was really, really green on the poly last time and will be better up the straight. He has improved a lot and I am hoping for a decent run.”

The Dennis Drier yard make Desert Fighter their best runner on the day in that last race. He looks to have been leniently treated by the handicappers, especially considering the form of his 3,25 length win over the course and distance has turned out well.

The Drier yard said Sea Fever would likely need his first run back from the Cape in the seventh, although he would still be fit enough to be a contender.

Drier’s Var filly Nova has her second career outing in the third race over 1000m, after a five month layoff, and they said it would likely be inexperience rather than fitness which could find her out as she was a small filly and had put in the necessary work.

Gareth van Zyl said Redcarpet Captain was beginning to become a bit coltish at home so they were sending him out, to run in tomorrow’s seventh, a bit earlier than ideal in order to settle him down. This run will bring him on as he obviously has a lot bigger fish to fry in the forthcoming South African Champions Season.

Garth Puller brings back Mr McSteamy from a nine month layoff to run in the fourth, a Maiden over 1000m. He said he had some class, but might be one run short.

Puller viewed the Charles Laird-trained Variable Pitch as the obvious horse to beat, because despite also returning from an eight month layoff he had decent form as well as the advantage of a 4kg claimer aboard. However, he pointed out Mr McSteamy’s half-sister Dreya’s Gold had relished the step back to this 1000m trip on Sunday when beating a promising sort in Cosmic Burst and hoped Mr McSteamy would do likewise.

Mike Miller’s decent sort Executive Power over raced when sent over1600m last time, but Miller refuses to accept he is a pure sprinter yet so tries him over 1400m of the fifth.

By David Thiselton

Scottsville has received 23mm so far this morning and it is still raining steadily, with a forecast of further rain over the next few days.

As a consequence, and in a good faith move to ensure that racing goes ahead, Gold Circle has decided to move tomorrow’s Scottsville race meeting to the Greyville Polytrack, with the clear proviso that the Company reserves the right to abandon the meeting if there are too many scratchings as a result of change of venue.

As it currently stands there are only 68 runners engaged at tomorrow’s meeting and any significant drop in this number will result in the abandonment of the meeting.

ends

Cloth Of Cloud, hugely impressive on debut at Kenilworth on the day of the CTS Million Dollar, may take on the best in Johannesburg in one of the two SA Nurseries at Turffontein at the end of next month.

“Either the colts’ race or the fillies’ – we will see which one,” said Sean Tarry yesterday. After her win in January, Tarry expressed concerns about the temperament of the R2.2 million Captain Al half-sister to Silver Mountain but he said yesterday: “She seems to have it under control.”

Cloth Of Cloud scored by six lengths at Kenilworth and, while the form has not worked out – the third and fourth have been beaten since, she won with incredible ease.

By Michael Clower

Picture: Sean Tarry 

Trainer Gareth van Zyl showed a rare display of emotion at Scottsville yesterday and the horse which had caused it was the highly promising Australian-bred two-year-old filly Mygirldownunder.

Meanwhile, Michael Roberts now looks to have two strings to his bow for the Gr 1 Tsogo Sun Sprint as his Argonaut gelding Natal obliterated a strong Graduation Plate field over 1200m.

Mygirldownunder was backed into 12/10 in her debut over 1000m in yesterday’s first race and never looked in danger of defeat under Anton Marcus.

She had the odds-on favourite Ebtihaal off the bit a long way out and just had to be shaken up to win by 4,75 lengths. She was receiving only 0,5kg in actual weight from the runner up, whose 2,5kg claimer alleviated some of the 3kg penalty she had earned for her impressive debut win.

Van Zyl had followed this filly’s pin-hooking auction in last year’s Emperor’s Palace Ready To Run Sale with keen interest, as she had been consigned by his chief client Brian Burnard. Upon seeing her knocked down for a sales-topping R2 million, he presumed she would soon have new connections and a new trainer. However, he was overcome to discover Burnard had bought her back and was sending her back to him.

Gareth also thanked his father Gavin for allowing him the opportunity to train all of Burnard’s horses on his own under the banner of the now compartmentalised Van Zyl yard.

“It has changed my life,” he said.

Marcus vouched for the amount of work which had gone into preparing Mygirldownunder for her all important debut, describing her as perhaps too precocious, meaning she had at one stage been headstrong. He had even on occasion seen Gareth himself aboard her on the training tracks.

Burnard has had the biggest monetary win of his career since Gareth took over the reins, landing the R2,5 million Lanzerac Ready To Run Stakes over 1400m at Kenilworth with Budapest last November. Mygirldownunder could well repeat the dose next November. However, races like the Gr 1 Allan Robertson are likely to be on the agenda before then.

Later, Natal showed high cruising speed, allowing Brandon Lerena to sit still on him in front. He came away to beat the decent Bunker Bill by four lengths, despite conceding him 3,5 kg.

Natal had shown a blistering turn of foot from off the pace when winning his previous start over 1000m by 2,25 lengths off a merit rating of 96, so is by no means a one-dimensional sort.

The Nick Labuschagne and Benji Jonsson-owned Cheveley Stud-bred gelding was knocked down for just R60,000 at the KZN Suncoast Yearling Sale. This was despite her USA-bred dam having produced a number of winners, including a Listed winner. The cheap price might have been due to sire Argonaut having fallen completely out of favour.

Roberts’ older sprinter Muscatt broke the Scottsville 1000m course record last weekend and the yard, which had gone through a bleak spell, has turned the corner in no uncertain terms.

By David Thiselton