Soldier In Action looks set for honours in the Maiden Stakes over nine furlongs of the Wolverhampton Tapeta 'battlefield' when an eight-race AWR programme follows three turf-jumping fixtures, Lingfield, Sedgefield and Huntingdon.
On a a wonderful day of 'Remembrance' and optimistic speeches, prayers of enrichment, enlightenment, we enjoyed tremendous excitement in the National Hunt world when Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, Conegree, made his seasonal reappearance on 'soft' Sandown.
This magnificent eight-year-old Karinga Bay gelding certainly enriched six minutes of a dank, dismal, afternoon with an astonishing display which, to all intents and purposes, was a 'solo' round of the magnificent Esher venue.
A vivid bay phenomenon enlightened proceedings; Coneygree jumped magnificently, 'burned off' two useful rivals with more than half a mile remaining and completed a tremendous fencing exhibition five seconds faster than 132-rated Vino Griego an hour or so later. He won by five lengths!
Coneygree is in a different league to all current staying stepplechsers, he also proved that conclusively on Prestbury Park and it will be very exciting if trainer Mark Bradstock declares for the 'Hennessy' under top-weight, three weeks on Saturday; it's his local course!
That 'super-Sunday' performance certainly lit up the NH scene and Soldier In Action, hopefully, will fight off eight rivals under Joe Fanning, whose 'no nonsense' pacemaking tactics are legendary on varying racecourses of the United Kingdom.
Front-running sorts out the wheat from the chaff; Michael Dickinson exploited opposition in the '70's and Martin Pipe subsequently did likewise; yours truly achieve several successes with such tatctics and I've never understood why there is reluctance to go out and make a true stamina test with the right 'tools!'
Positivity usually wins out but with a premium on jockeyship, and sensible intstruction from trainers, it's not just a question of just making the pace, more judging it and Fanning has become a past master.
There are also two divisions of the Maiden Fillies' Stakes over seven furlongs and. respectively, we're convinced that time-handicap selections, Izmir and Make Music, are solid each-way bets worth doubling with three places available in both.Three two-year-old races are ideal and there is also a nursery!
SELECTIONS
5.40 Soldier In Action (nap-e.w)
6.40 Izmir (e.w)
7.10 Make Music (e.w)