Day 2 Post-Mortem
Well as Chaucer puts it “from woe to weal and after out of joy”. Day 2 was a cold douche of reality after the dizzy heights of Tuesday. It started well enough when The Big Getaway fulfilled my ew expectations at 11-1. The winner Envoi Allen was hugely impressive but one of my few abiding principles in life is never to bet odds on. In the RSA Chase I weakened and backed Minella Indo at 7-2 even though I felt it too meager a price. He did everything but win - a bad jump at the last and a freakish burst from Champ deprived him. I tell you now I will be taking him seriously for the Gold Cup next year. He’s a real doughty character. I should know better than to bet in the lottery that is the Coral Hurdle but you have to get involved in the fun so I backed a Henderson horse (Burrows Edge) - sadly the wrong Henderson horse as Dame de Compagnie won. I left the two mile champion chase alone but I know a few folk who suffered badly from the defeat of the absolute dead cert Defi Du Seuil. Tiger Roll performed without my money on him and duly got turned over at odds on by the very fanciable French horse Easyland.
Day 3
The first race will feature the illustrious Faugheen - a great hurdler who at the age of 12 is freakishly making a new career in novice chases. I don’t buy it - and will not be joining the romantics loading on him. It’s a very tricky race with Samcro unpredictable, Melon a mystery, and Itchy Feet the obvious choice. I’ll watch from the wings.
The Pertemps Hurdle is a bit like the Coral but more predictable because it requires real staying power. Elliott has two very fancied horse obviously laid out for it: The Storyteller and Sire du Berlais (who won it last year). They’ll be around but I suspect they both have too much weight. Henry de Bromhead’s Royal Thief is carrying 10 stone 4 and looks an each way prospect at a juicy 33-1. I might have a saver on Welsh Saint at 13-2 (Henderson again).
De Bromhead may win the next race as well with A Plus Tard but 7-4 doesn’t excite me - maybe Frodon at 5-1 is better value - or a reverse forecast on the two.
Everybody of course wants Paisley Park to win the Stayer’s Hurdle for that nice blind man Andrew Gemmell. And perhaps he will but 8-13 is a ludicrous price so I will be looking elsewhere for ew value. Penhill at 11-1 looks a decent bet and that will round of my betting interest for the day.
