North meets south in the battle for sophomore middle distance supremacy as both Al Sahem and Edict Of Nantes have stood their ground in the Grade 1 Daily News 2000 to be run at Greyville on Saturday.

They are the only pair of Gr 1 winners in the field but both have tough draws and it is not a two horse race.

Al Sahem showed a good turn of foot in both the Gr 2 Gauteng Guineas and the Gr 1 SA Classic over 1800m when running second to Janoobi and Heavenly Blue respectively. He subsequently won the Gr 1 SA Derby, so looks to have the right combination of speed, stamina and acceleration to relish the Greyville 2000m. He is by Silvano so will be improving all the time. His trainer Sean Tarry is virtually invincible at present.

Al Sahem (JC Photographics)

Edict of Nantes’ sire Count Dubois produced the Daily News winner two years ago in French Navy. Edict Of Nantes turned it on when coming from the back in the Selangor Cup over 1600m to run a close second to the top class Gold Standard. He was nice and relaxed in the running when winning the Cape Derby and from an always handy position pulled away from them in the closing stages. It was not a vintage Derby field, but he won cosily. His trainer Brett Crawford did the Cape Derby-Daily News double with Jackson five years ago.

Zodiac Ruler set the pace in the Cape Derby and stayed on well for second. He has been gelded since and reportedly improved as a result. He has stayed on well in both of his SA Champions Season starts to date, including when third in the Daisy Guineas last time. He should be cherry ripe and will relish the trip especially from a plum draw of two.

His stablemate Copper Force also stayed on well in the Daisy Guineas to be just a head behind Zodiac Ruler and will also have benefitted from the run. This classy sort is also drawn well.

Pagoda showed a good turn of foot and signs of class when easily winning the Listed Derby Trial over this trip at Turffontein. He did the same when second to Al Sahem in the Grade 1 SA Derby, although the latter never looked in danger of defeat.

Africa Rising showed a good turn of foot in the Daisy Guineas to range up to Copper Force, but the latter then drew away from him. His pedigree is difficult to judge but if there are any stamina doubts his good draw will help.

Horizon showed an exceptional turn of foot when winning the Gr 3 Politician Stakes over 1800m. He will likely want a stronger pace than he received in either the Cape Derby and Daisy Guineas and that could bring out the best in him, although on pure form he has a bit to do.

Zodiac Ruler (Nkosi Hlophe)

Glider Pilot is the dark horse. He proved himself a decent sort when winning over this trip on debut and he then suddenly stayed on strongly late when the penny dropped in his second start over the same trip in a handicap. He has scope for considerable improvement and Tyrone Zackey is never a trainer to be ignored in big races.

Secret Captain is well regarded and stayed on for second in the Daisy Guineas in the manner of a horse who would see out this trip. He was then a bit flat footed at the top of the straight in a Progress Plate over 1800m on the poly, although he was staying on late. He received 9kg from Edict of Nantes that day and was beaten 2,45 lengths, which doesn’t augur well for his chances, but the blinkers have now been fitted and this might see him livening up.

Captain Gambler is the only filly in the race and stayed on well for third in the Cape Derby at 100/1 odds. The long striding filly stayed on quite well from last when unplaced in the Grade 1 SA Fillies Classic in her next start. She was also unplaced in the SA Oaks, but it is interesting to note trainer Joey Ramsden running her against the boys again.

Gingerbread Man is a nice rangy type, who was staying on in eye-catching style in the Daisy Guineas. He will likely relish the trip, although he was beaten 6,8 lengths in the Daisy Guineas so needs improvement.

Dark Moon Rising is an unknown quantity having easily won a handicap when stepped up to 1600m in just his third start. He did over race from a handy position that day, so will need to settle better over this trip, but as a rangy type by Ideal World he could still be anything and Piere Strydom is up.

By David Thiselton

Sean Tarry’s chances of reaching R30 million in earnings for the season became a formality on Saturday after he added the Gr 1 Tsogo Sun Sprint with Bull Valley to the earlier Gr 1 SA Fillies Sprint he had won with Carry On Alice.

Meanwhile, veteran trainer Paul Matchett rolled back the years by winning the Gr 1 Allan Robertson Championship with outsider Brave Mary.

Sean Tarry (Nkosi Hlophe)

Tarry carefully planned Bull Valley’s attempt at the Tsogo Sun Sprint, a Gr 1 handicap, as he is not the soundest individual. He avoided running him in the Gr 1 Computaform Sprint as a good run there could have added weight on to his back for the Tsogo Sun. The four-year-old Toreador gelding, carrying 58kg off a 109 merit rating, hardly ever looked in danger of defeat in a race run at a furious pace. He ran away from them in the end to win cosily by 1,5 lengths under S’Manga Khumalo. Search Party gave Brett Crawford a second runner up spot in this race within three renewals and the horse who had done it for him two years ago, Gulf Storm, finished fourth. In third place was the Dennis Drier-trained Barbosa and this gallant seven-year-old thus achieved his first place in the Tsogo Sun Sprint in his fifth attempt at it. The Gr 3 Kings Cup winner Bulleting Home enjoyed this sprint trip too and finished fifth.

Tarry and Khumalo won the first three races together on yesterday’s card at Turffontein. By then Tarry’s earnings for the season had climbed to R29,143,350.

Paul Matchett’s Brave Tin Soldier filly Brave Mary caused a 30/1 shock under Gunther Wrogemann in the Allan Robertson, where she showed a fine turn of foot to win by 1,75 lengths from the Tarry-trained Green Plains. The Duncan Howells-trained Neptune’s Rain finished third and was beaten a whopping 4,75, which shows how convincing Brave Mary’s victory was. Brave Mary was unable to run a place in a Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1000m at the Vaal three runs ago in her second career outing. However, she was unlucky there and had always showed plenty of zip. Two runs after that race she won her maiden by 6,5 lengths over the same 1000m and finished 8,2 lengths clear of a horse who had previously beaten her. The latter statistic signified how much she had improved. However, she was still ignored in the market on Saturday and caused the Pick 6 to pay R927,683.20.

Matchett, a three-time Zimbabwean Champion trainer, won the Gr 1 Golden Horse Casino Sprint (Tsogo Sun Sprint) with Let’s Rock‘N Roll in 2006 and that same season he won the Gr 2 Post Merchants with Tiza. Hopefully Saturday’s result will herald the beginning of a revival for his yard’s fortunes.

By David Thiselton

SECOND DECLARATIONS
29 MAY 2017

Declarations: 36

9 Horses scratched at 2^nd declarations

Secret Captain

Copper Pot

Fort Meyers

Bold Viking

Bi Pot

Deo Juvente

Rocketball

Prince Of Wales

Jubilee Line

PLEASE NOTE:

• Final Supp. Entries: Close 11:00 Monday, 12 June 2017
• Weights Published: Tuesday, 13 June 2017
• Final Declaration: Close 11:00 Monday, 19 June 2017
• Final Field and Draw: Announcement of the Final Field and Barrier Draws will take place on Tuesday, 20 June 2017
• Public Gallops:  7am at Greyville Racecourse, Thursday, 22 June 2017

Justin Snaith has declared both Zodiac Ruler (Bernard Fayd’Herbe) and Copper Force (Richard Fourie) for the Daily News 2000 at Greyville on Saturday. The pair were third and fourth to Janoobi in the Daisy Guineas.

He won the Grade 1 with Legislate three years ago and Fourie’s mount went on take the Vodacom Durban July. He also sent out last year’s runner-up It’s My Turn who went on to finish fourth in the July.

His Daisy Fillies Guineas winner Gimme Six will again be ridden by Anthony Delpech in the Woolavington 2000 while Fourie partners Captain Splendid in the Lonsdale Stirrup Cup. Joey Ramsden has supplemented Macduff for this 2 400m Grade 3.

By Michael Clower

Dennis Drier equaled a feat achieved by his famous Uncle Syd Laird on Saturday at Scottsville by winning the same Gr 1 race for the seventh time.

Sand And Sea (Nkosi Hlophe)

The exciting Twice Over colt Sand And Sea landed “Uncle Den” his seventh Gold Medallion, which is currently sponsored by Tsogo Sun. “Uncle Syd’s” seven-up was more celebrated as he did it in the Durban July and thereby set a record in the big race which still stands.

However, the most impressive part of Drier’s achievement is that of the eight renewals of the Gold Medallion this decade he has won six of them.

His first Medallion victory was way back in 1990 with Spook And Diesel and since then he has won it with Link Man (2010), Potent Power (2012), Captain Of All (2013), Guiness (2014), Seventh Plain (2015) and now Sand And Sea.

Of those horses, Captain Of All went on to win two further Gr 1s and Seventh Plain one. Captain Of All landed the Tsogo Sun Sprint and the Mercury Sprint as a four-year-old, having missed most of his three-year-old season. Seventh Plain won his next race, the Gr 1 Golden Horseshoe over 1400m at Greyville.

Sand And Sea could by all accounts go on to further Gr 1 success. He took a while to find his stride on Saturday. This didn’t overly concern Anton Marcus, not surprisingly, as the rangy colt was travelling ominously well in behind the field. When he switched him out it was race over in a matter of strides as the colt’s big action saw him making up the ground easily to win going away by 2,25 lengths from Varallo and Al Mariachi.

He looks likely to go a mile this season.

Sand And Sea was bred by Drakenstein Stud and is owned by Bernard Kantor, Jack Mitchell, Marsh Shirtliff and Mayfair Speculators.

Markus Jooste, of Mayfair Speculators was the outright owner of all of Captain Of All, Guiness and Seventh Plain, while Anton Marcus rode all of those in the Medallion with the exception of Captain Of All.

By David Thiselton

The swansong victory of Carry On Alice in the Grade 1 SA Fillies Sprint at Scottsville on Saturday was accompanied by rare emotion from her normally phlegmatic trainer Sean Tarry and the win was significant for more than one reason.

The five-year-old Captain Al mare was a member of what is regarded as probably the greatest crop of fillies in South African history. She was the first among them to win a Grade 1 and currently is the last, although one of her best contemporaries, Smart Call, is still campaigning overseas.  On Saturday she joined another of her contemporaries, Inara, as a five-time Grade 1 winner.

Sean Tarry (Nkosi Hlophe)

Carry On Alice won one Grade 1 in each of her first three seasons and in her final season has won two. Although all five of those wins were in sprint events, she showed her class as a two-year-old when going down by a short-head in the Gr 1 Thekwini over 1600m, despite jumping from a wide draw at Greyville.

She and four of her contemporaries won seven Grade 1 races between them in open company as three-year-olds. Inara and Alboran Sea achieved the feat twice, and Carry On Alice, Majmu and Same Jurisdiction each did it once, Furthermore, both of Alboran Seas Gr 1 victories that season were in weight for age sprints against the boys. Carry On Alice had also beaten the boys in the SA Nursery as a two-year-old and failed by only 0,25 lengths to repeat the feat in the Gold Medallion. The crop have gone on to win another nine Grade 1s between them. That makes a total of 24 Grade 1 wins for the crop to date, as they also contested eight age restricted Grade 1s. Those 24 Grade 1s have been won by nine individuals, namely Carry On Alice (five), Inara (five), Alboran Sea (three), Smart Call (three), Same Jurisdiction (two), Majmu (two), Bilateral (one), Siren’s Call (one), Pine Princess (one) and Real Princess (one).

Amazingly, Carry On Alice is yet to win an Equus award having been ousted by three exceptional members of her crop, Majmu, Alboran Sea and Smart Call, in respective champion age group awards, and by Captain Of All and Talktothestars, both merit rated above 120, in respective Champion Sprinter awards. However, this year she looks likely to walk away with two Equus awards as Champion Sprinter and Champion Older Female.

Carry On Alice has a fairytale story behind her and two of her owners, UK couple Dr John and Jill Warner, have become staunch fans of South African racing as a result.

It was only through the tender care of the Klawervlei Stud staff that Carry On Alice was ever conceived at all.

Klawervlei part-owner John Koster, speaking of her mother Carry On Katie a couple of years ago, said, “She used to throw these monster foals and maybe her canals were just too narrow. When she gave birth to her first foal she injured her pelvis and couldn’t get back up for a day or two. We nursed her back to health and the following year she conceived Carry On Alice.”

Carry On Alice was successfully born, but the following year Carry On Katie had complications when foaling down. Unfortunately, despite around the clock care, both her and her foal did not survive the ordeal on this occasion.

However, as consolation, Carry On Alice will be able to continue her legacy.

Carry On Alice (Nkosi Hlophe)

The Warners were two of forty people who had booked for a racing tour of South Africa in early 2013, which had included in its itinerary a trip to Klawervlei Stud. When the Met was moved to a later date that season, the Warners were two of only four people who did not cancel their tour tickets. On the trip to Klawervlei, Jill Warner asked Koster about a filly which had caught her eye in the catalogue for the pending CTS Premier Yearling Sale. The filly was of course Carry On Alice. The Warners became part-owners of the filly a few days later along with Tarry’s chief owner Chris van Niekerk. Klawervlei Stud also kept a share. The Warners could never have dreamed Carry On Alice would give them such a wonderful ride and she has also made them a myriad new friends.

On Saturday Carry On Alice proved she is better without cover as this allows her to use her high cruising speed to maximum effect. She crept up to join the leader before Khumalo pressed the button at the 400m mark. That famous kick propelled her to the front and her big heart enabled her to stave off the challenges of Grade 1 winners Just Sensual and The Secret Is Out to win by a length. She also won this race two years ago as a three-year-old. Her other Grade 1 wins were all against the boys, in the Gr 1 SA Nursery (2014), the weight for age (wfa) Gr 1 Computaform Sprint (2016) and the wfa Betting World Cape Flying Championships (2017).

She can arguably be regarded as the greatest sprinting female South Africa has produced his decade as her Grade 1 count is higher than the like of Val De Ra and Via Africa. However, National Colour will still have pride of place as the best Tarry has ever trained. One can only hope Carry On Alice will be as good a broodmare as National Colour, who already has two Gr 1-winning progeny, and she will be given every opportunity to be so as she will be heading overseas to be covered by the best stallions.

Carry On Alice will be sorely missed by the racing public, who could always rely on her to give of her best. He career record ends at eleven wins, eight seconds and five thirds from 29 starts and she only failed to earn a cheque on three occasion and all of those were in races beyond sprints. She earned R4 591 250 in stakes.

By David Thiselton