YES, IT’S FOUR NAPS OFF THE REEL! The unstoppable Daqman reeled in his fourth consecutive winning nap with Sea Shanty yesterday, a 5-1 shot in a sequence of five out of six which started at 6-1:
WON 6-1 ANIPA
2nd 11-4 Pearl Princess (beaten a nose)
WON 4-5 PROVIDENT SPIRIT (banker)
WON 1-1 TOORMORE (banker)
WON 2-1 LITIGANT
WON 5-1 SEA SHANTY
DAQMAN HAS PRICEWISE ALL AT SEA: Sea Shanty sent him 18-2 ahead of Pricewise in their Flat-season challenge since Doncaster (57-14 overall in winning returns in the same races from November 23 last year). They clash again today in the 3.40 Fairyhouse.
FOUR-DAY PROFIT OF 82 POINTS: Nothing else went right so Daqman skimmed a profit on the day of only pennies to stay on 82 points over the four days of his winning naps sequence.
3.35 Musselburgh Gold Cup Every track wants to run a gold cup and there are two today, this one on the Flat in Scotland (firmish ground) and one over the jumps in Ireland (getting that way in the sunshine).
King Of The Picts has taken on the best of his age over the sticks, including Josses Hill and Vautour. It’s a question of whether he is fast enough for these on the Flat.
He is a stone and a half in front of Bright Abbey under NH Rules but neither would beat Caldeonia at these weights. And that one is slow!
Dr Irv has scored over CD but is a summer horse on all known form, though keep an eye on the market: the stable wins when the money’s down.
Entihaa, Corton Lad and High Office have all been at their best up to a mile and a half, and Pass Muster (8.2 on BETDAQ this morning) is the one for me.
‘Muster’ is mustard when there’s a strong gallop on and he’s won over hurdles, on the Flat and in an NH bumper. Unsited by the track last time at Fakenham, but a winner and a second at Musselburgh.
3.55 Plumpton (Sussex Champion Hurdle) And every course wants its own champion hurdle, too. The inaugural race last year went to a Graded performer, which applies to Local Hero, Fergall, Dildar and Dan Breen, but he’s nine now and his stable is out of form.
There’s not much between Fergall and Local Hero on a line through Clever Cookie. Saint Jerome is on a roll but has to leap two grades out of novice company here, and is up 18lb inside a month.
Dildar is a ‘glass’ horse, having only his fourth race inside two years. Ted Spread has been a disappointment for two years and more now. The Green Ogre is only four and still a maiden.
The plot horse has to be Specialagent Alfie (9.0 on BETDAQ), a good-ground winner who was second in this race last year.
3.40 Fairyhouse (Easter Festival Hurdle) Eight winners out of 10 have come from the bottom third of the handicap, seven out of 10 under the age of eight. Four of the last five were rated between 120 and 126.
Stocktons Wing, off a featherweight 121 (taking account of Ger Fox’s claim), has 11lb less than when winning a Grade 2 over CD a year ago.
He was only 11-1 SP for Our Conor’s Triumph Hurdle and – by the same sire, Jeremy – looks saved up for this, on behalf of owner J P McManus.
J P has a top-of-the-ground performer in Coffee – too small to cope with the mud – sent over by Jonjo O’Neill, his only runner today ahead of Shutthefrontdoor and Alfie Sherrin in tomorrow’s Irish Grand National.
There’s not much between Willie Mullins’ claimed-off Midnight Game and Sailors Warn (needs plenty of cut) on a line through Joxer, who is hooded for the first time.
Midnight Game runs for Gigginstown, whose other contender, Ally Cascade, has plenty of weight for this but is very lightly raced classy individual, with ‘disguised’ form recently (‘burly’, not ready for November run; then raced over a trip too far in the Tara Hurdle but ‘travelled like the winner most of the journey; his jumping was particularly good’ quote unquote Racing Post form).
Mullins has three other runners, all of them – Passage Vendome (will appreciate the better ground), plus the youngsters Daneking and Bally Longford – strategically placed below the 11st barrier.
Daneking is already hooded but still tends to run a bit freely Passage Vendome is a 10lb better chaser; Bally Longford has been saved for the better ground.
In fact, Mullins is more miss than hit in this race, with returns in the last five seasons of 3/6/10-2/4/5/8-12/8-1-13, just the one winner.
VERDICT: This could be an old-firm battle between Gigginstown and McManus. Ally Cascade (14.0 on BETDAQ as I write), two from two on today’s course, and who ran second to Jezki as a juvenile, is the pick of the top half of the handicap.
Lurking in the bottom half, where the winner usually comes from, Stocktons Wing (20.0), second to Our Conor in his younger days, has a featherweight if we alllow Ger Fox full value for his claim.
4.30 Cork (Imperial Call Chase) Toner D’Oudairies beat last year’s winner of this (Roi Du Mee) when they met in October, with Noble Prince well in rear. The rest of today’s field is a stone off the market leaders.
4.40 Fairyhouse Gold Cup You can’t split Bright New Dawn and Mozoltov on a line through Mallowney (runs in the next race) but the sunshine may do so. Mozoltov has won only on soft-heavy.
Ballycasey may be too good for the Gigginstown pair. He seems to act on any ground and deserves top rating here after his fourth in the RSA at Cheltenham; now back to his best trip.
The handicapper says Ballycasey by 4lb over Rebel Fitz, five in a row last year and the fresh horse, back to the chase after a prep win over hurdles at Cork. It’s a hard call.
5.10 Fairyhouse (Coolmore Stud Novice Chase) Ballycasey, and Mozoltov have both been taken on by Ned Buntline, who ran second in the good-ground Grand Annual at the Cheltenham Festival, the winner, Savello, being given a 152 rating.
Whether the handicapper was right to keep ‘Ned’ down on 140 (after all, he was hooded first time) is more than academic for this, since only one other here is regarded as better than 138.
That one, Road To Riches, has only ever performed well on soft-heavy ground. That also applies to Mallowney, who beat Ned Buntline a couple of lengths on the soft at Navan in January (Gilanbrook another six lengths third) but was receiving 6lb.
The Mozoltov run suggests that ‘Ned’ is, strictly (though off sync timewise), 142, while his Ballycasey effort would make him 146. As a six-year-old, he is entitled to improve on those, any time now.
DAQMAN’S BETS (staked to win 20 points, except multiples)
BET 2.7pts win PASS MUSTER (3.35 Musselburgh)
BET 1.5pts win and place ALLY CASCADE, and 1pt win and place STOCKTONS WINGS (3.40 Fairyhouse)
BET 3.3pts win (nap) SPECIALAGENT ALFIE (3.55 Plumpton)
DAQ MULTIPLES: 4 x 1pt mixed trebles and 1pt win acca SPECIALAGENT ALFIE (3.55 Plumpton), TONER D’OUDAIRIES (4.30 Cork), BALLYCASEY (4.40 Fairyhouse) and NED BUNTLINE (5.10 Fairyhouse)
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