Meaningless racing phrases

[CrustyPatch]

I’ve never understood the lauding of JA McGrath, nor why the BBC thought him an adequate replacement for P O’S

I know there are plenty of foreign commentators in other sports but it just seems wrong in racing.

I suppose the same could be said about Mark Johnson in America. And Thommo in Camel Country

Good point about Mark Johnson. He did really well to get the job in America. I’ve noticed his commentaries in this country have become much more ostentatiously American in style.
As for Tommo, he got the Dubai job by brazenly seeking out Sheikh Mohammed and offering his services as the course commentator at Nad Al Sheba in the early days. All credit to him for his enterprise. He did a very good job but eventually lost out when they replaced him with Terry Spargo. I tell you what, Big Feller, it was good while it lasted.
He revealed details of how he got the Dubai job and how he did his regular winter shuttle out there in his book, Tommo’s Year, quite a few years ago. It was a fascinating and surprisingly good read.

[CrustyPatch]

Mick Fitzgerald is one of the growing clan of people insisting on mentioning "the lucky last". He managed to slip it in on At The Races today. Now where did I put that brick?

[sberry]

"..the stable clearly knows the time of day.."

Good, we wouldn’t want them to turn up too late for the race.

[Triptych]

‘He’s being niggled along’.

"Come on you silly boy pick your feet up, were you born with 2 left hooves? Everyone at the yards going to laugh their socks off when you come home plum last again"…etc etc

Usually the point I toss my slip in the bin.

Things turn out best for those who make the best of how things turn out...

[MarkTT]

I think Richard Hoiles pays too much attention to the slightest mistake or adjustment by a jockey

During races, especially those televised on the networks, a commentator should firstly describe every horse from front to last, commenting on colours of the more fancied runners.
Hoiles will often pick up on the slightest mistake by a horse going over the first couple of fences, and sometimes a horse could have completed half or a full circuit before being mentioned.

Thomo is a joke, and has three or four cliches / platitudes that he reels off in every race
* They’re not hanging / messing about
* He could have gone round again
* AP McCoy cannot be mentioned without reference to being 16 times champion jockey
* A loose horse is the most exciting aspect of any race.

But one of my biggest annoyances is misinformation. Commentators describing how a trainer is in flying form when they’ve had one winner in twenty runners. The commentator may have watched the stable have a winner on the Tuesday, and during the Saturday racing when talking about the horses prior to or during a race, they will then refer to the stable in glowing terms, despite them having 12 unplaced runners since which have gone unnoticed.

Quite simply, you cannot beat Simon ‘ Languid ‘ Holt when it comes to commentating. Ideal for both novice and experienced racing enthusiast.

[Author]

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