Yesterdays’s banker Treasury Notes didn’t let me down, winning a shade cosily at 7/2, only doing just enough to win, and may be one to follow. The other selection, though speculative, ran a cracker to come third, beaten only two necks, so it came very close to us having a 100% strike rate, however temporary!
A couple of late ones for you today. The first of them runs at Catterick in the penultimate race, and although there are others with chances, and I’m wary of some of those forecast at big prices, I have narrowed down the field and the voices in my head have told me to side with Chaplins Bay (Catterick 4.55pm). Ruth Carr had a hard act to follow when she took over the yard from her grandfather David Chapman, but she does very well indeed, has plenty of winners and a very healthy strike rate, primarily with horses aged 4 years and upwards. Chaplins Bay appears to be family-owned, and initially I thought its name might be a homage to the great Chaplins Club, which was a real stable star for David Chapman back in the 1980’s. For a number of years I believe it held the record for the most handicaps won in a single season (9 wins in 1988, I’ve just checked). But my trip down memory lane was a dead end, because the gelding was originally a 180,000gns yearling purchase, and trained in Ireland by David Wachman, so the family had no say in the naming of it, though perhaps that was why the horse caught their eye at the sales. Picked up fairly cheaply at auction by Ruth Carr, he has run three times for the yard this year, coming 2nd at Thirsk, 1st at Hamilton, and 4th at Carlisle, so has lost his maiden tag and is in decent form. That run at Carlisle saw him beaten only 2 lengths, and but he may find Catterick more to his liking. It’s true that he has crept up the handicap as a result of recent performances, but off bottom weight today, I think Chaplins Bay has a fair chance against some beatable opponents and may still have some improvement in him. 2pts WIN, around 4/1 is available and the likely starting price.
Wavelet (Doncaster 6.40pm) disappointed recently at Goodwood but that was a big step up in class, and she was coming back after a three month absence. Not every horse will adapt to Goodwood, and since her other form is very solid, albeit on all weather surfaces, I think she is worth another chance. She is dropping back down in class today as well, and I believe is worth an interest, so 1pt WIN at around the 5/1 mark (Tote, Betfred, Corals) some are shorter but you should have no problem getting 5/1.