Prolific owner Roy Moodley has many winners from the “Roy” brigade and two more were added to the tally at a scorching hot Scottsville yesterday.

Roy’s Donkey (Nkosi Hlophe)

Yogas Govender provided the first when Roy’s Folly converted a string of recent places into victory under Tristan Godden ahead of outsider River Ayre with Alistair Gordon’s runner much improved since being fitted with blinkers while Roy’s Donkey made a nonsense of his nonsensical name winning the Blinkers Bar Handicap for Kom Naidoo.

Apprentice Sandile Mbhele has had his share of trials and tribulations this past week. He picked up a seven-day suspension when winning on Hot Chilli at Greyville last week and he had a bit of a ‘mare’ yesterday.

Riding Kingsview for Therese Mitchley, his mount took a right turn when under pressure and Mbhele – and indeed the rest of the field – were fortunate that he was clear as the mare was allowed to shift alarmingly across the entire field before cannoning into the inside fence allowing Roy’s Folly in for the win.

Earlier Mbhele arguably cost himself victory aboard the Gareth van Zyl-trained Poster Girl when dropping his near-side rein, letting Just Vogue hang on for the win for Gavin van Zyl.

No doubt he will learn but it is coming at a cost.

Blistering heat and a dearth of rain has not made things easy for the course managers and Scottsville was running quick which did not suit many of the runners including favourite Isingamoya who was in contention for much of the trip but did not go on with it under pressure.

Keagan de Melo, recently signed up for the Duncan Howells yard, paid his way when scoring on favourite Mambo in the eighth. De Melo blasted his way through a narrow inside gap to take up the cudgels with Fully Charged, going through to win comfortably.

By Andrew Harrison