REVIEW
EAST SUSSEX & ROMNEY
MARSH
CATSFIELD
Sunday 9th April 2006
by Simon McInnes
From memory it seemed that Catsfield
fell earlier than ever before, being a moveable feast, but it was
actually the same weekend as last year. The difference was that a
late Easter had left it further forward in the south-eastern
schedule than usual, and the ground was confusingly not as fast as
tradition dictates. The number of entries was not encouraging, but
the smallest field was five, and most events ended up being
competitive.
The meeting was started with a couple
of pony races, and they had served to bump up the crowd for a
meeting that is usually pretty well supported anyway. This caused
bedlam in the betting ring, but whether the bookies were gaining
from it is hard to tell as the majority appeared to be indulging in
open mouthed gawking rather than investment. In the Ladies Open, I
was intending to back Carryonharry once having ascertained that he
was fit enough, and when I approached the ring, 4/1 was available.
By the time I had fought my way to the front, 5/2 was the best on
show, and not in my vicinity either.
The organisation of trade stands on the
outside of the course, apart from a couple of overspills on the
inner, does help the viewing immensely, and placing the Splendid
Meat Company, Davenports and Home Made Bhajis next to each other
made life much simpler for their regulars.
Friar House Antique
Jewellery Members, Subscribers & Farmers
1: Magniolia 2: Glory Trail 3: Beacon White
Winner owned: Simon Tindall, trained: Jenny Gordon, ridden: Chris
Gordon
With the yard bouncing back to their best a week earlier, Magniolia
was at the head of the market for this, a valid form choice but a
the fact that he ran out here a year ago hardly inspired great
confidence. He did tend to jump left, and ran very wide at the
exact spot of the earlier infraction, but had too much in hand for
a game but one-paced Glory Trail. Only a six year old, there is
possibly a decent race in Magniolia when caught in the mood and he
runs as good as he looks, but he is not one to be taking short
prices about. Newcomer Lutin Collonges made a race of it for two
and a half miles, although his jumping could have been better. A
rare new addition to former area powerhouse team owned by Mike
Roberts, there is every reason to think Lutin Collonges will
improve for the experience. Beacon White was well back in third,
but was a first career completion for Matthew Braxton, and Galeaway
was giving his owner a decent first ride, not being totally out of
contention when unseating at the fourteenth.
1: Rakatia 2: Battle
Honours
Winner owned & trained: Joe Turner, ridden: James
Owen The Turner operation has continued to support the
south-east points well in the last couple of seasons despite the
journeys down from Suffolk reaping little in the way of reward.
With more bedlam than usual on the M25, the trip must have been
worse than ever, so the success here was a thoroughly hard earned
one. For the future, the manner in which the race unfolded means
that it is form of little value. The favourite, Court Award (valid
to be market leader, but surely not a 1/2 shot) slipped and lost
his rider on the bend after the third. A lap later, Miss Biddy, who
caught the eye in the paddock, pulled up when still in front. The
other paddock pick, Nigels Dream, was running an odd race gaining
and losing his position at frequent intervals, and his challenge
fell away from the third last. He was well beaten when coming down
at the final fence, in one of those slow motion events when you can
feel instinctively a few strides before the fence that the horse
does not have confidence that he can jump it, but it is too late to
avoid doing so without a very sharp refusal. Fortunately horse and
jock emerged unscathed, and the accident left Battle Honours to
clamber over the last to claim a very distant second on his first
completion for two years. As for Rakatia, he too almost found the
last to be a fence too far, and the fact that he had pulled up in
four of his five other runs in 2006 casts a big shadow over the 1
that he has now added.
Barretts Land Rover,
Ashford Men's Open
1: Little Herman 2: Fair Exchange 3: Owen's Pet
Winner owned: Mrs I Colderick & Mr S Taylor, trained: Alison
Hickman, ridden: Peter Bull With Peter Bull standing in
for Chris Gordon after Court Award's unceremonious dumping in the
last race, Little Herman gained a small consolation for his narrow
defeat in the Kent Grand National, with a stiff track and slight
cut in the ground playing very much to his strengths. He and Fair
Exchange went clear at the end of the back straight but the
challenger could not summon anything resembling a change of gear
and Little Herman, hardly an equine Ferrari himself, always had the
situation in control. Owen's Pet was never travelling well, and
gained third by not giving up. With two wins under his belt this
season, Ichi Cavalo was a possible contender, but his jumping was
devoid of fluency and it was all he could do to stay in touch at
the back until pulled up with a lap to go.
Drewett Neate Ladies'
Open
1: Carryonharry 2: Militaire 3: Dick McCarthy
Winner owned: Mrs H Silk and R Purkis, trained: Emma Leppard,
ridden: Cynthia Haydon Even as late as the thirteenth,
all six runners were in 'close enough if good enough' mode but
Physical Graffiti was about to run out of stamina and Newick Park
was also on the verge of dropping out. This was most unfortunate as
being the only ES&RM qualified runner, he would have picked up
a handsome trophy simply for finishing. The veteran Dick McCarthy
was next to crack, finding the pace too hot, but he did eventually
stay on past fellow 14 year old Caldamus to nick the minor placing.
Between the front pair, the race unfolded similarly to the mens'
race, with them kicking on leaving the far side and the second
placed horse doing all it could to worry the leader, whilst that
rival refused to concede. Carryonharry had been a good staying
chaser for Martin Pipe, but his last couple of seasons were very
regressive, and this less strenuous opposition proved much more to
his liking. As for Militaire, second to a chaser once rated in the
130s is a creditable run, but he would not win many trophies for
consistency, so who knows how he may choose to develop on this.
Gaby Hardwicke
Solicitors Confined
1: Perange 2: Magnus Veritas 3: Old Kilminchy
Winner owned: Mrs M Merriam, trained: Di Grissell, ridden: Alex
Merriam This was the tightest race of the day, being
well above the average standard for a confined in these parts (the
first pair have been in the frame in hunter chases already in 2006,
and the third has won two confineds), and also in it's unfolding,
with four horses approaching the last well enough bunched to be in
consideration for the win. Monarch Ruler came down there, when not
looking as if he was going as well as the others. The fall was
highly adverse luck, as having been taken wide by Rupert Stearne,
two rivals jumped sharply right just in front of him, and there
must have been an element of distraction. Old Kilminchy was unable
to summon extra effort at this point, as early leader Magnus
Veritas rallied to regain the lead early on the run in. However,
Alex Merriam was determined not to be denied and recovered to get
home by a neck. Alas the bookies were at their worst in this, with
the prices sitting for a long time in the region of Evens, Evens,
4/1, 5/1, 6/1 and 12/1 - an over round of 159% in a six horse race,
whereas under Rules something like 118% would have been likely.
Although the third to fifth favourites drifted a little to make the
margins about 140%, outsider Gola Leader never did, even though his
recent form compared to the opposition entitled him to be something
in the region of 50/1.
Grants Cherry Brandy Open Maiden
1: Grayslake 2: Laurier De Cotte 3: Barrels Pal
Winner owned: Mrs H Silk and R Purkis, trained: Emma Leppard,
ridden: Peter Bull As mentioned
on a previous review, since his four-timer at Aldington in 2005,
which was a first ever multiple winning day, Peter Bull has been
picking up doubles a-plenty, but this has to be the luckiest. The
first came on a spare ride, and in this his horse looked cooked in
second when left clear at the final fence. The race appeared in
advance a match between two coming from Rules both having unseated
last time and off course since early 2004. Grayslake would have
been rated about a stone the better by the handicapper, but
Hercules Morse looked to have an edge in fitness. They were clear
rounding the top bend, and although both were hard ridden, Hercules
Morse was maintaining an advantage of a couple of lengths when he
ran down the last and unseated Philip Hall. To the naked eye, it
looked a bit of a soft unseated for an experienced jock, as
Hercules Morse did jump the fence, but there had been no previous
hint of him doing it, so maybe it was the surprise factor that did
the damage. With the race having him done him good, and his jumping
solid after a bad blunder at the fifth appeared to act as a wake up
call, Grayslake ought to be able to win a restricted at least.
Ditto for Hercules Morse, as long as the incident at the last does
not prove to be typical of him. The only other finishers were a
very long way adrift, but as neither Laurier De Cotte nor Barrels
Pal were legless at the end, it has to be presumed that it was a
fundamental talent deficit rather than stamina or fitness that
caused them to be so far back. The only newcomer was Ballynonty,
who did not jump well enough to stay in the battle for the minor
honour and pulled up at the fourth last.
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