Sandown Review 18/2

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Despite a chill in the air and the attraction of events in Berkshire, a reasonable crowd descended on the Esher slopes for an afternoon’s entertainment at Sandown Park. Royal Artillery Day took place on ground described as soft (good/soft places) but it looked pretty dead and tacky to be honest.

The card opened with a juvenile hurdle over two miles. The market revolved around MASSENA and HEAD HUNTED and the latter was backed into 5/4. However, this was a result for the bookies as KAYEF (despite attracting small market support) was a decisive winner from outsider LUCKY STRIKE. KAYEF raced near the pace throughout and was travelling well on the home turn and whereas he hadn’t got home here on heavier ground earlier in the year, that was a better heat than this.

HEAD HUNTED set the pace but was quickly beaten in the straight while MASSENA was travelling nicely down the far side before rapping the middle flight and weakening and being pulled up at the end of the back straight. The winner looks a fair type though not Triumph Hurdle class.

Race two was a handicap chase over an extended three miles and produced the finish of the day with the first three spilt by barely a length at the line. THE RAINBOW HUNTER had been ridden patiently in midfield by Ed Cookson and came to lead at the Pond Fence seemingly going well while CRAIGLANDS, who had made a couple of jumping errors, was being ridden. Approaching the last, THE RAINBOW HUNTER seemed to be going the best but up the hill QHILIMAR came to join the party and the three fought hard to the line drifting over to the right. A Stewards Enquiry was called but the result was left unaltered. Though this was nominally a Class 3, they weren’t a particularly inspiring bunch and with DASHING GEORGE pulling up down the back straight, I’m uncertain about the form.

Race three was the Royal Artillery Gold Cup; a Class 3 chase over three miles. Another moderate field to be honest and MR BIG set a reasonable gallop but he probably needs an extra mile and was readily brushed aside going down to the Pond Fence. BLU TEEN was always going well near the pace and looked the likely winner approaching two out but SURENAGA, who had clobbered a couple down the back straight including a catastrophic blunder at the ditch which sent the jockey nearly over the horse’s shoulder came through to lead at the start and stayed on well up the hill. KNIGHTON COMBE was a never-dangerous third while SCOTS DRAGOON got going far too late but was running on strongly to be fourth.
It’s hard to know the value of the form in races like these – SURENAGA has won a point and ran a good second in a strong Ladies Open in the West Country but this was a step up. BLU TEEN was a course winner and may take his chance in the Grand Military Gold Cup next month where the likely quicker ground should help him see out the trip. SCOTS DRAGOON looks to me the sort who could run well in the Midlands National but he’s not that good to be honest.

Race four was a novices’ hurdle over two miles. MEGASTAR, second in a Grade 1 over CD last time, was readily supported to 2/5 but he’s never convinced me and he was readily turned over this afternoon though not by the Henderson mare LIFESTYLE but by hurdling debutant TOPOLSKI who instigated a double for trainer David Arbuthnot with an authoritative and impressive display. With form over two miles on the flat, stamina wasn’t going to be the issue but his jumping was fluent and he powered up the hill leaving the more fancied runners in his wake.

Whether he’s ready for Cheltenham is hard to say and his apparent liking for soft ground is a disadvantage but TOPOLSKI looks a horse with a future over hurdles and there’s no reason why he shouldn’t get a bit further.

Race five was a novices’ handicap hurdle over two and a half miles. With ARRAYAN a non-runner, PERE BLANC was backed in to 4/9 to follow up his Kempton success and he absolutely hacked up and anyone punting £9,000 to win £4,000 never had a second’s anxiety in the straight. BAILE ANRAI was giving the winner 11 lbs. and ran a respectable race but connections of the winner may be tempted to strike again as quickly as possible as even an 18 lbs. reassessment won’t stop him in this form.

The final event was a hunter chase over two and a half miles and this saw the return of JUST AMAZING from the Nicholls yard who had run a creditable sixth in the Bet 365 Gold Cup having looked not to stay the trip. Today, over a mile shorter, he jumped these admittedly modest rivals into submission, making almost every yard for a nine-length success. The strength of this form is hard to assess as BOB HALL ran a dismal race and was pulled up before the last while the well-supported SOLEIL FIX lost his rider after the water jump and ALMAYDAN was made to look slow in third.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see JUST AMAZING in the Foxhunter field at Cheltenham but obviously there’s a long way to go before that.

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For the avoidance of doubt, Just Amazing won’t meet the selection criteria for the Cheltenham Foxhunter unless he either wins an Open Point-to-Point or finishes first or second in another hunter chase before March 1st.

I think Paul Nicholls is well aware of that, though, judged by the gelding’s entries at both Taunton and Huntingdon this coming Thursday.

With both novice chase visits to Cheltenham in 2009-10 having resulted in wins, including one at 3m1.5f, there’d be far worse propositions in the Foxhunter line-up. A comparatively dry week at Prestbury Park would help more than hinder, too.

I’m just hopping mad that I missed getting some each-way money on Launde at 100-1. The superb Tom Cannon would rate the best rider – amateur or professional – that the gelding has been partnered with in a very long time, in my humble.

The assistant to Alan Fleming as well as increasingly the go-to rider for tricky beasts in East Anglia and South East Area Points, I would have no qualms whatsoever with Cannon taking the ride on Starluck in the coming weeks should Timmy Murphy be required for, say, Ghizao.

Surenaga’s win in the Royal Artillery pays another huge tribute to the well-stocked Ladies Open he was second in at Black Forest Lodge on January 16th. The winner Picaroon was courting a rating of 138 over fences only last summer, whilst the third Shernally and fourth Deloughtane have won since.

That probably constituted no worse an effort (and maybe a bit better) than his ousting of Le Duc at the same course on day one of the season, and he wouldn’t be the first horse ever to have taken kindly to Lance Bombardier Sally Randell’s handling.

A similarly prominent showing in the Grand Military three weeks hence would not surprise, regardless of underfoot conditions – much of his best work before yesterday had been recorded on fast ground.

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Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.

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