by Chris Riordan
Readers who followed last week’s posts and comments should be flush following heralded Lisa Cropp’s sensational week of winners. Stick with her and fellow Kiwi gun Michael Walker, especially on the wet decks confronting our immediate racing schedules.
Perth is once again the featured venue (rock hard ground for sure) but I cannot even pretend to be on top of their form – hopefully Elvis can chime in with some wisdom. The Kingston Town Classic (R7, 1800m) will entice Eastern seaboard punters but it is a tricky affair, containing 2 of my sacked contingent in Trusting (there’s a bloody misnomer) and Triple Honour (my strike rate is only marginally worse than his). Boom Blackfriars 3 yr old Playing God will start fav but I’ll stay out.
Locally we have another sodden Valley Nights in store (swinging the Turfbet bag to an empty Friday night ring) and then a probable bog at Caulfield. It is worth recalling, though, the dire predictions for The Heath on Cup Day and that the course played pretty truly. As usual, watch for trends…the smart advice, however, is to not fall in to the trap of backing poor, out of form horses because of a track downgrade. You can eliminate some who won’t go through it, but still look for sound formlines – and that stays true for trainers and hoops also.
The inevitable high penetrometer probably makes Jungle Ruler logical top pick for the Quaddy opener.
The next, the Victoria Cup (R6, 1100m) is a really good field with heaps of early speed. This is a race worth a second look. I expect Darren Weir to have Broken (12) primed and his stable is, as usual, firing. But there are heaps of chances in this. Don’t leave out bolter Johnny Fiasco(4) despite the awful gate.
I must confess to being a bit keen on topweight Blooded in R7 and expect the numbers 1 + 2 to fight out the last.
Good luck.
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