They’re not interested in us the grass roots who put them where they are. They want day trippers and tourists. It’s only a matter of time before it’s extended to Saturday.
I bet JP will be reaching for the old cheque book after that bumper at Fairyhouse - Keskonrisk very impressive for the Hydes against much fancier rivals
Not a bad day for me...2 winners..Singlefarmpayment has to be my cliff horse but I still love him. Emitom was complete pants.. what was that all about?.. . First time at the new years day meeting for us as usually we don't make it due to late new years eve finish. Really enjoyed day and it was pretty busy too..
My review of the day - Things to note from the day - Stewards played a big part The first race saw a reversal of places between Imperial Alcazar and Protektorat, and whilst I am biased I do think it was the right result. Imperial Alcazar had grabbed the stands rail and Protektorat moved across from the inside all the way to the outer. If Paddy Brennan hadn't switched Imperial Alcazar he would have had a nasty incident. He lost momentum at the time, and whilst he did have time to go past the eventual second, I think the incident did cause the best horse in the race to lose momentum and a length at least. It was then the three way photo that grabbed attention, with the narrowest of margins between Oldgrangewood and Saint Calvados with Lalor a very close third. The photo that has been tweeted is pretty inconclusive and I hope we see a better quality one if it exists soon. The photo tweeted - Champ makes a chump of himself It was a day of what ifs, and Champ looked to have the race in his mercy before a horrendous fall at two out. He travelled nicely today and when asked, he jumped nicely, but when left to his own devices he did jump ponderously and also left at some fences. He was cantering when he got in tight to two out, and the speed he was travelling meant that he ploughed through the fence and had no chance of staying on his feet. Thankfully he managed to get up from the fall, and I hope he hasn't lost any confidence and I hope he has no injury from the incident. It was a shame to see him fall, but it was probably one of those rare occasions that a faller actually enhanced his reputation during a race. I hope we see him out in the next month, he needs another run before being thrown into a deep chase race at the festival. Summerville Boy returns to form It has been a difficult few seasons for fans of Summerville Boy, from his win in the Supreme when beating Kalashnikov and Mengli Khan (with a certain Lostintranslation well behind). This season he got away with poor jumping at Uttoxeter before coming down at Sandown. This was inspired by the Tom George yard, going back over hurdles and racing prominently. He was able to nick yards and the start and set the race up for himself to kick up the hill. I think this is probably one of his big days though, I don't rate his chances in the big festivals and they are going to have to place him brilliantly to get other big wins from him. Magic for the Grand Annual One horse that probably caught everyone's attention today was Magic Saint who ran with plenty of sparkle in the big handicap chase. He however doesn't get home over the trip and surely this is going to be the same result whenever he tries it. I expect he will be down in trip at the festival, and if the handicapper does take the form literally, we might see him drop a few pounds too! He looks an obvious Grand Annual horse and if he gets to the festival, he will be one to side with.
The horse over from france Genola who finished 3rd in the bumper looks pretty smart. Got spooked in the paddock and they tried to get the rug off him before he went out on the racecourse and it got stuck around his tail. He got quite animated and probably exerted more energy than the trainer would have wanted I am sure. Not sure what the plans will be for him but definitely one to keep an eye on..think he looks pretty tidy indeed...
I’ve been impressed with the quality of the french horses coming over recently. Maybe they don’t need to sell them to us and train them themselves.
