Greyville’s second ever Twenty20 meeting on Friday evening saw the in form Gavin van Zyl and Dean Kannemeyer yards on fire once again.

Van Zyl scored two wins, a second, a third and a fourth from six runners, while Kannemeyer notched up two winners and a third with his only three runners on Friday evening.

The twenty minute gap between races makes for an exciting evening and appears to be a popular innovation as long as it remains an occasional event, because the downside is obviously that with the format being jockeys riding alternatively with apprentices, trainers are unable to always book their first choice riders.

In the third, a MR 94 Handicap over 1400m, the Van Zyl-trained four-year-old Seul Amour gelding Just Ask Me proved he could soon take in a feature as he won well off his merit rating of 90 under Billy Jacobson, holding off the admirably consistent Translunar. Just Ask Me has won four times from just ten starts and Seul Amour is proving to be a useful sire.

In the fifth, a Novice Plate over 1600m, the Sean Tarry-trained Intergalactic was attempting to book her place in the R2,5 million Emperor’s Palace Ready To Run Cup, but instead it was the R2,015 million Bloodstock South Africa Ready To Run Cup candidate Way Out Front, who showed her big sales race credentials with a good win under Keagan de Melo. The Van Zyl-trained Mogok filly showed a fine turn of foot from the back of a small six horse field to quickly reel in the Kahal filly Khonza, who was beautifully relaxed in the running and made an early dash for home. Khonza fought back well when headed to be only 0,75 lengths shy at the line and is a horse with plenty of scope so is definitely one to follow.  Intergalactic ruined her chances by over racing and was well beaten in third.

Kannemeyer’s new arrivals from Cape Town to his Summerveld satellite yard kept up their fine record and in all have now had 18 runs, 9 wins, one second, three thirds and four unplaced runs.

His five-year-old Judpot gelding Surrey relished the step back in trip to 1400m in an Apprentice 78 Handicap , having over raced early when narrowly winning his KZN debut over1600m on the poly two weeks earlier. The event fortunately fell in one of the four apprentice-ridden races on the night, which allowed 4kg claimer Eric Ngwane to keep the ride. Ngwane took Surrey straight to the front from a wide draw and the gelding strode out at relaxed pace. Ngwane simply had to use hands and heels to drive him out to a comfortable 3,75 length victory over Mackdesi. The handicapper might take a while to rein in this horse and he could make it a hattrick next time out.

Later Kannemeyer’s once well regarded Argentinian-bred Giant’s Causeway five-year-old gelding Capel Top enjoyed the slight step up in trip from 1800m to 1900m, having battled to stay in touch early last time out before running on. This was also his third run after a layoff and he was clearly a touch sharper which allowed Anthony Delpech to get him into the perfect position early, one wide of the rail in fifth place, having jumped well from draw six. The luckless Van Zyl-trained Rocketball had to be driven to get into a handy position from a wide draw and this early exertion might just have been his undoing as he only just failed to hold on from a running on Capel Top. Rocketball should be cherry ripe next time out.

In the first race of the evening, which was interrupted by a false start, the Sean Tarry-trained King’s Chapel filly proved perfectly suited to the 1400m trip at this stage of her career. She had not been disgraced in some fair company in two races over 1200m. However, she then appeared to be a bit uncomfortable at the maiden 1600m pace last time out, despite being out of a Badger Land mare, and over raced slightly throughout before finding little extra. This time she relished the quicker pace and despite being caught wide she found plenty in the straight to win comfortably under Muzi Yeni at generous odds of 12/1. She will enjoy stepping up in trip against a better class of horse next time out.

In the second, an Apprentice maiden for three-year-olds  over 1400m, the Tony Rivalland-trained New Zealand-bred Kolinsky looked hard to oppose having not been disgraced against strong opposition in his previous two starts. He easily despatched the weak field, cruising in by three lengths hands and heels under Luyolo Mxothwa. Runner up Mighty Mississippi and the third-placed favourite, the first-timer Bahamas Woodstar, will both enjoy a step up in trip as they stayed on well.

The sixth race, an Apprentice Maiden over 1800m, saw an exciting finish as the three-year-old James Goodman-trained A.P. Answer filly Fashion Talk, ridden by 2,5kg claimer Tristan Godden, just touched off Cherry Orchard by a short-head with the rest of the field well beaten. This was far from being an inspiring field but the front two are at least improving.

In the eighth, an Apprentice MR 64 handicap for fillies and mares, Doug Campbell kept up his good recent form as the five-year-old mare Lucky Packet enjoyed stepping down to a sprint trip for the first time in over two years off her competitive merit rating and won comfortably under Callan Murray at odds of 5/1. The 54 merit-rated mare won on debut way back on Boxing Day at Clairwood in 2012 as an early two-year-old and this was her first victory since.

The ninth race, a Maiden over 1600m, was a thriller. The Mike de Kock-trained Australian-bred three-year-old gelding Fareeq started 5/10 and led from the off under Anthony Delpech, although he did have to do some work to get there from a draw of six. Meanwhile, the Wynand Nel-trained five-year-old Fort Wood gelding Danish Wood, returning from a nine month layoff and ridden by Mandla Ntuli, had settled well on the rail about three lengths off the lead from a low draw. Fareeq maintained a resolute finishing run in the straight and fought back after being headed by the running on Danish Wood. The judges were unable to separate them. The Kannemeyer-trained third-placed Noordhoek Ice is one to watch having run on strongly from second to last in the running.
– David Thiselton
– Picture: Surrey was an easy winner at Greyville on Friday night (Nkosi Hlophe)