The dogs are barking about Lohnromance who reappears after a 15-month absence in the Khaya Stables Handicap at Kenilworth today.

Aldo Domeyer’s mount made a huge impression when romping home over 1 400m on debut at Durbanville with Yogas Govender saying: “She is blessed with talent but she has a deformity on her off-fore pastern and runs on three legs.”

He put the bad leg continuously in ice buckets but wasn’t able to get her to the course again. Now it’s the turn of Andre Nel who says: “She has had serious problems and it’s a long time to be off but she has come back nicely.”

Rival trainers seemed to know all about her when discussing prospects on Saturday and Nel has already shown more than once that long lay-offs hold few fears for him. His Rondeberg facilities for getting a horse racing fit are much better than those of most of the Cape Town trainers who have to rely on prep runs.

Aldo Domeyer

The mare gets in with a rating of only 65 and is clearly far better than that in terms of sheer talent. She opened at 2-1 with World Sports Betting yesterday but that price soon went.  Top weight Money Surger is an obvious danger at 9-2 and is bidding for her third win off the reel after recovering her best form.

“I don’t really work her at home – she spends most of her time in a paddock,” says Piet Steyn. “Kenilworth down the straight is her track, particularly when the south-easter is blowing.”

Strictly speaking 3-1 second favourite Star Academy should reverse the placings as she is 2.5kg better with Money Surger for last time’s half a length while it is significant that Boomtown Belter (15-4) steps up in trip after six successive races over 1 000m.

“She has always been running on just too late,” explains Adam Marcus. “I’m hoping that we get a true run race.”

Five Star Rock opened evens favourite for the opening maiden but he may have been flattered by last time’s second – it was in a work riders’ race and they are notoriously unreliable – and so the vote goes to Mount Fuji (backed from 6-1 to 4-1 yesterday) even though Vaughan Marshall has decided to run him without blinkers.

Marshall and MJ Byleveld may also win race two with 12-10 favourite Tonya whose good second at the beginning of the month was her first run out of the maidens.

Marshall is using Shadlee Fortune’s valuable 4kg claim on 9-2 stable companion Dance In The Woods whereas Mike Stewart employed it to good effect on Caprice Des Dieux ( 9-2 here) when she beat Tonya half a length. “I reckon I have again got Tonya to beat,” says Stewart.

Wafiqah looks the part in race three even though she has only three-quarters of a length in hand over Malachite Sunbird. “She has always shown that she is above average and after her debut on Met day – I reckon I ran her too early – I gave her a long break,” says Darryl Hodgson.” When she reappeared she ran too free. She wanted more ground and last time she ran on very well.”

By Michael Clower

Anton Marcus has called for the Maine Chance Paddock Stakes and the Klawervlei Majorca to be switched in future years.

The four-time champion made his plea after leaving the opposition for dead on Same Jurisdiction in the final 100m of the Grand Play Conditions Plate. Duncan Howells is going to run the 11-10 favourite in both races.

Marcus said: “You want to go a natural progression from a mile to nine furlongs. That’s self-explanatory and common sense should prevail. It was [originally] a pretty poor decision from the powers-that-be.”

Anton Marcus

Tar Heel, who has lost races he should have won in the past by refusing to settle, may be entered for the Betting World Cape Flying Championship after coming good under Marcus in the Racing Association Need For Speed Sprint. He really stretched away in the final 200m although his rider warned: “I think six furlongs is his absolute ceiling.”

Joey Ramsden added: “I have been trying to teach him to settle. He could well have a go at the Cape Flying although I don’t think he is quite good enough.”

Brutal Force is the stable’s main hope for the Met-day sprint and he is to return from Johannesburg in the next few days despite earlier plans to leave him there until a week before the race.

Ramsden explained: “We have had to give up on that idea because you just don’t know what the state vet could do with AHS travel restrictions.”

Captain Chaos, who started joint favourite with Tar Heel, was hardly at the races by comparison and will step up in trip with Ronnie Sheehan observing: “They took him off his feet.”

Heartland, who battled hard under Bernard Fayd’Herbe for a narrow win in the Cape Premier Sales Jet Master, is likely to be entered for the Queen’s Plate this morning.

Justin Snaith said: “I don’t know what sort of chance he would have but off 102 what else could he do? I will talk to the owners.”

The former champion trainer sent out the 2 000^th winner of his hugely successful career when The Merry Widow kicked off the stable’s four-timer. This was the first of three winners in the Drakenstein blue.

Current Event, who showed a fine turn of foot at 20-1 under S’Manga Khumalo in the Grandwest Cape Summer Stayers, looks a natural for the J & B Jet Stayers on January 30 although he would meet runner-up Kingston Mines (who won last season’s race) on 4kg worse terms.

Quote of the day: “We’ve got 1 000 kids here today and I will spend any amount of money to see them happy.” Hassen Adams.

By Michael Clower

A crack at Futura, Act Of War and Captain America could be on the cards for Noah From Goa after the gutsy way he won the Grand Parade Cape Guineas at Kenilworth on Saturday

The 5-1 Tiger Ridge gelding, part-owned by breeder Mary Slack, gave Mike de Kock his first win in this race since Domino Man 12 years ago and his fourth in all.

Noah From Goa (Liesl King)

Son and assistant Matthew said: “Noah has had a hard season and we will see how he pulls up but the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate would be one of the options. We’ve got to expose these three-year-olds to the older horses and see how good they are.”

A Kenilworth Grade 1 could also be on the agenda for Brazuca (8-1) who was only beaten three-quarters of a length. “If Weichong thinks he will stay 2 000m we will leave him here for the Investec Cape Derby,” said a clearly pleased Johan Janse van Vuuren.

But Nassa, backed from 20-1 to 11-1 and only a short head further back, goes to Hong Kong and Tony Millard, who will train him, said: “We already have a very nice horse for the Cape Derby with Brett Crawford in Nebula.”

Silver Mountain, who briefly looked a furlong out as if she might justify all the money that poured on her – she started at 8-10, was less than a length behind the winner. She came back with a cut on her right hind but nobody was offering that as an excuse.

“She had a bit much to make up on them,” said Mike Bass who was wheel-chaired through a sea of well-wishers by son Mark to get into the parade ring. “But Aldo gave her a good ride and she had every chance. I thought she ran a good race.”

Daughter Candice pointed out that the filly has five weeks – compared with only two this time- before the lucrative chips are down in the CTS Million Dollar. Victorius Jay, 40-1 but beaten only 1.2 lengths into fifth, also goes for the big money.

Sean Tarry reported that Liege (14^th) was coughing and the disappointing Budapest (last) was blowing hard after the race.

What the jockeys said:

Anthony Delpech (Noah From Goa):  “He struggled the whole way round the turn as he was on the wrong leg but he is a small horse with a big heart and he doesn’t know how to lie down.”

Weichong Marwing (Brazuca, 2^nd): “He ran very well and he loomed up. I thought it was a great run.”

Corne Orffer (Nassa, 3^rd): “It was always going to be difficult from that 16 draw and I didn’t want to be three wide. I made up ten lengths in the straight – if only I’d had a decent draw.”

Aldo Domeyer (Silver Mountain, 4^th): “I would have preferred a harder pace but I was happy with the way she was making up ground and I thought she might do it. I got to the winner’s hindquarters but then he went on again. Had she had another week it might have been different. She will beat these horses in time.”

Anton Marcus (Hard Day’s Night, 10^th): “He got to the front easier than he had done in the Selangor but there was no kick – he just faded very quickly.  It was a flat run.”

By Michael Clower

Picture: Noah From Goa (Liesl King)

Following the abandonment of the last two races at Scottsville yesterday and the jockeys’ concerns with the going on the turn between the 800 and 600 metre marks, Gold Circle has decided to move Wednesday’s (23 December 2015) race meeting to Greyville with all races remaining on the turf.

In addition the two races not run at Scottsville on Sunday will be moved, as carded, to the Greyville turf track this coming Saturday, 26 December 2015.

Racing can be sublime theatre, on an off the track, but no matter that most were willing the filly Silver Mountain to victory, letting sentiment influence sound reasoning can be fatal when it comes to punting. And so it proved as Noah From Goa stamped the Dingaans form in the Gr1 Grand Parade Cape Guineas at Kenilworth yesterday and the diminutive favourite Silver Mountain fell victim to some bullying tactics by her male rivals.

Anthony Delpech rode the perfect race on Mike de Kock’s gelding, tracking the pace and making his move at just the ride moment. But it was not all plain sailing. “He struggled around the turn and was always on the wrong lead. It just goes to show what a good horse he is. He knows how to win,” he commented post-race.

After the scratching of Rabada earlier in the week Anton Marcus replaced Donovan Mansour on Selangor winner Hard Day’s Night and as is Marcus’s want, he pushed forward early to make the pace with Budapest and Noah From Goa tucking in behind with Brazuca also handy.

Silver Mountain broke well enough but was shuffled back to midfield.

Noah From Goa and Silver Mountain (Liesl King)

Hard Days Night and Budapest both folded tamely leaving Noah From Goa clear early in the straight and he stuck to his guns, just as he had in the bruising Dingaans battle.

Silver Mountain looked to have got bullied by her bigger male rivals when being shuffled back in the early running and turned for home out of her ground. She did quicken to threaten briefly before running out of puff inside the last furlong.

Candice Robinson, who saddled Silver Mountain for her father Mike Bass, was philosophical. “We would have liked to have seen her race closer in the early stages and she got a bump on the bend. We may not have beaten Mike’s horse but with better luck I think she would have finished closer,” she said. Under the circumstances it was a great run.

Brazuca looked buried a furlong out but was doing his best work late to snatch second ahead of Nassa, the pair relegating Silver Mountain to fourth.

“The draw killed us,” said Brett Crawford of third-placed Nassa. “We would have sat next to him (Noah From Goa) and it would have been a different race but it was a good run under the circumstances.”

Noah From Goa has only one blemish on his record in six outings and given the manner of victory the Guineas/Investec Derby double is on the cards for the son of Tiger Ridge although Matthew de Kock, standing in for his father Mike, was cautious in his response. “He’s had a hard season and we’ll see how he pulls up tomorrow. There are some nice races in the Cape season but we will see.”

There was some cheer for Duncan Howells as Same Jurisdiction pulverised some high class opposition in the Grand Play Conditions Plate. A labour dispute forced him to scratch all his Greyville runners on Friday night and forfeit his trip to Kenilworth.

But Same Jurisdiction warmed up for either the Paddock Stakes of the Majorca Stakes, still to be decided, in superb fashion as Anton Marcus asked her to stretch 300m out and she responded with a telling run to leave the opposition struggling.

Heartland and Bernard Fayd’Herbe (Liesl King)

Weight, too much of it, is a curse that most jockeys have to contend with, not more so than Bernhard Fayd’Herbe. Staying alive on the sniff of a burger from Burger King to keep his weight under 60kg, there a few finer in the saddle and his talents were on display as he got Heartland home in the Cape Premier Sales Jets Master Stakes (L) in a bruising battle with Smanga Khumalo and Silicone Valley. Heartland gave his rival 6kg and when Silicone Valley slipped his field it looked all over. But Fayd’Herbe, biding his time in a pocket on the rail, squeaked through a gap at just the right moment. Heartland, a full brother to Cape Derby winner Jackson, looked a certain winner as he charged home but Silicone Valley was not done. Khumalo extracted more from his mount when challenged but just not enough as Heartland got up to stave off the unkindest cut of all – for now at least.

Justin Snaith relinquished his championship title to Sean Tarry last term but things are looking bright nearly half-way through the current season. Snaith leads the log with 89 winners, R1 million and 25 winners ahead of Tarry, and there have been ominous signs for his title rivals as he has already palmed the first two juvenile scurries of the season and bagged four winners on yesterday’s card.

Var Ahead got the ball rolling last Saturday and Snaith and stable rider Fayd’herbe struck again in the first yesterday as The Merry Widow had too much toe for the opposition. It was the first leg of a treble for Drakenstein Stud as the Dean Kannemeyer-trained filly Impala Lily showed the benefit of experience as she got home ahead of debutant Leisure Trip in a tight finish to the third and Same Jurisdiction rounding off a memorable day.

At Turffontein Dominic Zaki, who handed in his trainer’s brief last week, gave an emotional farewell speech on Thursday but had one more fish to fry as he signed off on a winning note at the same venue yesterday.

Apprentice Craig Zackey, who has been riding as first call rider for the yard for the past few months and who comes out of his time at the end of January, showed just why he is a rising star. Showing nerves of steel, he timed his run to perfection on the aptly named Last Battle to give Zaki the perfect send-off.
– Andrew Harrison