With decent field sizes at Wednesday’s Hollywoodbets Scottsville meeting, it usually means there is plenty of value on the card for punters.
Trainer Garth Puller looks to be striking while the iron is hot with his youngster Agrado while another three-year-old, Dean Kannemeyer's maturing Gurkha, looks to be going the right way.
Puller, highly regarded as a brilliant horseman, does not has a rough season regardless of the size of his string. He always gets good results, as attested by his 12.8% win strike rate this season.
Puller has brought Agrado along quietly. The Global View gelding was not raced as a juvenile and while he is a winner of two of his six starts, he hasn’t won by far and could be underrated.
Agrado looked to have beaten a weak field in the maidens and while he held form after, he didn’t impress much running places until his last start, where curiously Puller placed him against some top opposition in a Progress Plate where he also dropped in distance to 1000m.
It proved to be the right move and he duly beat high-class Roman Agent after a slow start.
Agrado carries 60.5kg in Race 7, a Class 4 handicap over 1000m. It is interesting that - apart from horses benefitting from apprentice claims - the weight spread is quite limited.
Kannemeyer has also taken his time with Gurkha. The bay gelding showed some potential when at home in the Western Cape, placing in his first three starts. He sprinted well but he is a son of Fire Away and a full brother to Highveld filly Rani Of Kittur, whose last three wins were over 1800m.
Fire Away - it must be said - has had a brilliant season so far. Most recently two of his sons, Confederate and Fire Attack, took home the Grade 1 SA Classic and Grade 1 Premier’s Champions Challenge respectively at Turffontein.
Kannemeyer has another promising runner in Dancing On A Cloud, who will have his first post-maiden start in Race 9.
This son of Lancaster Bomber impressed in both starts.
He has drawn quite wide but there looks to be a lot of speed in the race, and he may nevertheless follow up.
Race 1: 6 Plumbago Park, 3 Educator, 8 Winter Blessing, 2 Alannah
Race 2: 1 Kimball O'Hara, 8 Beach Palace, 2 Run To Rio, 5 Future Saint
Race 3: 7 Yippee Kiyay, 8 Wing Walker, 2 Grand Force, 1 Galactic Lover
Race 4: 6 Midnight Hour, 10 Kali Bwana, 11 Limitless Sky, 13 Fine Wine
Race 5: 4 One Irish Rover, 6 Cotton Ron, 5 Now I Got You, 1 Nellie Melba
Race 6: 10 Un Bel Di, 9 Golden Destiny, 12 Riverstone, 13 Querari Rose
Race 7: 4 Agrado, 10 Rafa's Boy, 11 Blue Holly, 12 Bless Me Fred
Race 8: 1 Gurkha, 4 Ingqwele, 2 The Ghost, 9 Dapper
Race 9: 12 Dancing On A Cloud, 1 One Scotch, 2 Papa C, 3 Terminator
BEST BET
Race 7: 4 Agrado
VALUE BET
Race 4: 6 Midnight Hour
BEST SWINGER
Race 6 9x10
BIPOT
R192
Leg 1: 1, 2, 8
Leg 2: 7, 8
Leg 3: 6, 10, 11, 13
Leg 4: 1, 4, 5, 6
Leg 5: 9, 10
Leg 6: 4
PLACE ACCUMULATOR
R216
Leg 1: 7, 8
Leg 2: 6, 10, 11
Leg 3: 4, 5, 6
Leg 4: 9, 10
Leg 5: 4
Leg 6: 1, 4
Leg 7: 1, 2, 12
PICK 6
R720
Leg 1: 4, 6, 10, 11, 13
Leg 2: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8
Leg 3: 9, 10
Leg 4: 4
Leg 5: 1, 2, 4, 9
Leg 6: 1, 2, 3, 7, 10, 12
JACKPOT 1
R48
Leg 2: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8
Leg 3: 9, 10
Leg 4: 4
Leg 5: 1, 2, 4, 9
JACKPOT 2
R48
Leg 3: 9, 10
Leg 4: 4
Leg 5: 1, 2, 4, 9
Leg 6: 1, 2, 3, 7, 10, 12