This year marks the tenth anniversary of one of the Vodacom Durban July’s most celebrated renewals and two of the big race’s finest rides.

In 2008 the great Pocket Power and the gallant filly Dancer’s Daughter dead-heated in an epic tussle, which had the crowd delirious with excitement.

Five-year-old Jet Master gelding Pocket Power had arrived in KZN with his name already stamped in history, having just defended his crowns in both the L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate and the J&B Met.

However, he was yet to win a Grade 1 outside of Cape Town.

In 2007, he had been desperately unlucky to have lost the Grade 1 Gold Challenge by a whisker. He had been continually baulked in the straight before producing a devastating finish. Legendary trainer Mike Bass had found that result particularly hard to bear, as he had done wonders to have the big bay so fit. Pocket Power had missed his intended preparation when scratched at the start of the Drill Hall Stakes, a scenario which could have been avoided had Bass been on course to offer advice about the gelding’s perennial foot problem. To cap it all his 2007 July preparation had then been interrupted not only by his bothersome foot but also by unseasonable rain. He still ran a great race, though, finishing a 0,45 length dead-heat fourth carrying topweight of 58kg.

So, 2008 was going to be the year Pocket Power made amends.

One horse with the ability to stand in his way was the robust four-year-old British-bred grey filly Dancer’s Daughter, who was coming off a Grade 1 double in the Paddock Stakes over 1800m and the Majorca Stakes over 1600m.  However, after being backed from 5/1 into 2/1 for her Champions Season opener in the SA Fillies Sprint, she didn’t raise a gallop and finished a well beaten eleventh.

Trainer Justin Snaith could see she was not herself. Dancer’s Daughter, like many top fillies, was often unfriendly, but there were two beings in the world she doted on, her stablemate Crimson Blossom and her groom Cyprian Mkhonowana. She had a grate between her and Crimsom Blossom at her Champions Season stable at Clairwood so she could see her. Justin’s mother Sue suggested she was missing Cyprian and consequently the Snaiths flew the filly’s regular groom in from Cape Town.

Sue Snaith recalled at the time, “When she saw him coming she began neighing her head off and kicking the door, she was so happy to see him.” The turnaround in the powerful grey was immediate. However, the public had written her off and she started 10/1 for the Gold Challenge, with Pocket Power 8/10 favourite. Dancer’s Daughter’s run was opposite to her one at Scottsville. She tore off, pulling Weichong Marwing’s arms off, and running three wide. Yet, incredibly, she still found extra in the straight and won by a comfortable 0,75 lengths from Imbongi. Pocket Power was possibly given an overconfident ride and was left with too much to do. He was a fast finishing 1,5 length fourth.

Marwing jumped off Dancer’s Daughter for the July, not surprisingly considering how strongly she had raced in the Gold Challenge. She had also over raced when winning the Paddock Stakes and Justin Snaith pointed out what a “serious horse she must be” to have won two Grade 1s in such fashion. Snaith had no doubt she would stay, having ridden her in work himself. He maintained she would drag him twice around Clairwood if she could such was her love of galloping. Ironically, he used to regularly ask Pocket Power’s jockey Bernard Fayd’Herbe to workride her, knowing he was strong enough to hold her. Snaith’s only concern was about her settling and he needed the right jockey. He found the perfect one in Kevin Shea, who had two of the best pair of hands in the business.

And so the big day dawned with an age old family rivalry set to do battle again. Mike Bass and Justin Snaith’s father Chris had shared a house as students and had started their training careers together in the Cape Hunt amateur ranks. Chris was the first to take out his professional license and Mike was his assistant for a year. They were each other’s best men and their children grew up as close friends. Justin was assistant to Mike at one stage too, while Bernard Fayd’herbe, Pocket Power’s jockey, and Justin are great friends.

Pocket Power started 28/10 favourite and Dancer’s Daughter, receiving 5kg, was 8/1 second favourite. The gates opened and Dancer’s Daughter was slowly away from a draw of 13, surely by design, as Shea then tucked her in behind runners. The ultra-tough filly was unphased by the jostling she received before the first turn. Meanwhile Pocket Power had jumped beautifully from draw three, but also experienced some rough and tumble before the turn. Dancer’s Daughter raced two wide most of the way, but had cover, and coming up the hill Shea had managed to get her one wide and between horses.  Pocket Power was travelling well in midfield on the rail. Both horses were poised to strike. Fayd’Herbe bided his time in the straight as he had a wall of horses in front of him, but upon switching outward at the 300m mark the big bay showed an explosive turn of foot.

However, the filly had crept up and was on his flank. Pocket Power’s huge stride carried him past the horses inside of him, but Dancer’s Daughter was galloping resolutely, her nose bobbing up and down with determination, and was gaining inch by inch. She put her head down on the line and after an agonising wait the second ever July dead-heat was announced. The photo finish showed Pocket Power’s hoof across the line, an illustration of his enormous stride. The pair had another titanic clash in the 2009 Met, but on weight for age terms this time Pocket Power won by a quarter of a length.

By David Thiselton