Monday Rewind: State-by-state expert analysis on who to circle and who to bin
OUR resident experts look back at their respective metropolitan meetings on Saturday and give us their assessment of the best and worst performers.
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OUR resident experts look back at their respective metropolitan meetings on Saturday and give us their assessment of the best and worst performers.
Nathan Exelby (The Courier Mail)
Eagle Farm (abandoned)
THE TALKING POINT
The big wet. You could have written the script six months ago given the drama that has engulfed the Eagle Farm revamp from the start. That’s two false starts now, with last month’s midweek meeting also set aside. The forecast suggests it will be third time lucky for this Saturday’s feast of Group racing action.
THE QUOTE
“If you look at photos of the flooding in the vicinity of the track, people need to put that into context when they talk about the track. In normal events, it would have held up, but this is not a normal event. This is an extraordinary event.”
— Racing Queensland’s Head of Operations Declan Martschinke
MARKETS
STRADBROKE HANDICAP
Eagle Farm, Saturday
$4.20 Azkadellia
$5 Black Heart Bart, Counterattack
$7.50 Music Magnate
$8 Malaguerra
$12 Under The Louvre
$15 Delectation
$17 Kaepernick (doubtful)
$21 Artlee, Takedown
$31 Charlie Boy
$35 Stratum Star
$41+ Others
QUEENSLAND DERBY
Eagle Farm, Saturday
$4.60 Mackintosh, Eagle Way
$4.80 Howard Be Thy Name
$7.50 Eschiele
$9.50 Encosta Line
$10 Etymology
$12 Provocative
$21 Cylinder Beach, I’m Belucci
$26+ Others
J.J. ATKINS
Eagle Farm, Saturday
$4.60 Souchez
$5 Sacred Elixir, Archives
$7.50 Attention
$10 Candika, Nikitas, Cadogan
$14 Jericho
$21 Redouble
$23 Dreams Aplenty
$26+ Others
Odds: UBET
THIS WEEK
Tuesday: Quirindi, Wagga. Geelong
Wednesday: Doomben, Canterbury, Sandown, Gawler, Belmont
Thursday: Townsville, Bathurst, Wyong, Wangaratta, Pinjarra
Friday: Rockhampton, Muswellbrook, Canberra, Swan Hill
Saturday: Eagle Farm, Randwick, Flemington, Morphettville, Belmont, Gold Coast, Toowoomba, Newcastle, Grafton, Swan Hill, Broome, Darwin
Sunday: Sunshine Coast, Gatton, Hawkesbury, Sapphire Coast, Edenhope, Swan Hill, Naracoorte, Kalgoorlie, Launceston
Danny Russell (Herald Sun)
Sandown Hillside
BLITZED
Dwayne Dunn leads Craig Williams by three in the Melbourne jockeys’ premiership, but had to do it tough to land a double on Saturday. His rode with a swollen and painful right cheek courtesy of a midweek bee sting. Dunn heads north next weekend to ride Under The Louvre. Williams returns from suspension on Monday.
Another Saturday double for Robert Smerdon — Clemency and Odyssey Moon. He heads north next weekend with Under The Louvre in the Stradbroke.
BLUNDERED
Apprentices and the whipping rule. Four of the kids copped a whack from stewards at Sandown for hitting their mounts more than five times before the 100m, with repeat offender Ben Allen rubbed out for eight meetings. Jake Bayliss was fined $600, Dylan Dunn $500 and Beau Mertens $200.
Could Darren Weir be in the middle of one of his longest-ever droughts? He went winless on Saturday. Yep, just one Saturday. But that constitutes a hell of a form slump for Weir.
HOT
Turnitaround. I’ve been tipped the horses in its past four starts, opted not to have a bet and watched it win.
NOT
11.20am starts on a Saturday. Racing journos have got to have a sleep-in once in a while, you know.
HORSES TO FOLLOW
Odyssey Moon, Battlecamp, Inspired Estelle (Lankan Rupee’s three-quarter sister)
BIN
Sooboog (although reportedly pulled up lame).
Shayne O’Cass (The Daily Telegraph)
Rosehill Gardens
BLITZED
Koby Jennings. Senior jockey, nay champion jockeys, don’t commonly ride four winners on a day in town or anywhere for that matter but for an apprentice to do it is something special. Jennings is a whiz but he’s without the ego and entitlement that goes with it in sport with these designated ‘young guns’. He could be a name are hearing for the next 20 years.
BLUNDERED
You’d love to own him and no one is doubting his honesty but Inz’N’Out is having more outs than ins for us $10 win punters.
HOT
Jennings — the aforementioned one stole the show at Rosehill on Saturday but there was a lovely little cameo from Deanne Panya who rode a double and very nearly a treble. She’s a gun fast becoming a bazooka.
NOT
Fair’s fair, it would be downright nasty to condemn any horse or jockey given the deplorable conditions at Rosehill on Saturday.
HORSES TO FOLLOW
It would make a wonderful study to see how many horses that raced on Saturday come out and win next start. I am saying ‘ horses to follow — none’. Some 87 horses started and a good three-quarters of them had gut busters. You try weighing 500kg carrying someone one 10th your body weight on the soft sand at 60km/h then straight back into it on Tuesday. They ain’t machines you know.
Lincoln Moore (The Advertiser)
Morphettville
BLITZED
Matthew Neilson is riding in great form in the second half of the season and rode half of Saturday’s Morphettville card. Likely to continue to get very good rides with his links to the David Hayes and Tom Dabernig stable and looks like he might run away with the metro riding premiership.
BLUNDERED
Golden Buckleboo had plenty of backers on Saturday and he loomed and then died on his run in the straight when the pressure was right on.
BACK ME
Hard not to like the way Tildy Lad returned to racing. he’s always carried big expectations but his effort first-up in a strong sprint field was very encouraging.
SACK ME
Hard to find genuine excuses for Rich River who was a rare Darren Weir failure in Adelaide on the weekend when a red-hot favourite.
Originally published as Monday Rewind: State-by-state expert analysis on who to circle and who to bin
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