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The Turf

Robin Oakley

Wednesday, 30th April 2008

Twelve to follow

Marcus Tregoning’s Il Warrd was impressive first time out at Kempton and his canny trainer reckoned him the best in the yard as a two-year-old despite a disappointment behind Rio de la Plata last year.

Anything John Oxx enters for the Oaks is worth checking out and the Peintre Celebre filly Katiyra looked good when winning over 7f as a two-year-old on soft ground at Leopardstown.

We always need a decent sprinter or two in the list and Thurloe Thoroughbreds could have a cracker in Corrybrough. Henry Candy, who trains him, handled the sire Kyllachy, who did our Twelve a good turn when selected a few years ago, and Timeform sees this strong chestnut as one to follow. I missed his Sandown seasonal debut but by all accounts he was impressive.

Another nippy performer is the Irish filly That’s Hot, who finished a close-up fourth in the Stewards Cup last year at very rewarding odds. Trainer Ger Lyons is showing a good strike rate on his forays across the Irish Channel and she should do well in six-furlong races.

Every list ought to include something from Coolmore and Godolphin. For Aidan O’Brien’s candidate I go for Psalm. Timeform does not mince words about Seamus Heffernan’s more than tender riding of Psalm when she finished second to stable companion Kitty Matcham in a Naas maiden, suggesting the horse was not given a full opportunity to win. The Halifax gurus reckon the Sadler’s Wells filly is open to considerable improvement.

From Godolphin’s I like the five-year-old Schiaparelli, a consistently successful German stayer for Peter Schiergen who was purchased by Sheikh Mohammed after winning Italy’s Gran Premio del Jockey Club, just like Electrocutionist in 2006. His Milan victory in October was his third Group One in a row and he should be a force in the big mile-and-a-half races.

From last year’s list I retain Major Cadeaux. Beautifully and ballsily held up and unleashed at the right moment by Richard Hughes at Sandown on Saturday, the chestnut proved that he can get a mile in top company. The Hannons love this big fellow and I am sure he has a top prize in him. At a slightly lesser level, Michael Bell’s Honky Tonk Sally looks capable, too, of winning races over 7f to a mile.

Barry Hills’s Prime Defender found it tough as a three-year-old but his trainer is hoping for a good season from a horse who could prove a successor to the stable’s Red Clubs, now gone to stud.

Another trainer with robust opinions and an astonishing record of consistency is Middleham’s Mark Johnston. I complete our list of hopefuls with two of his who might well form part of the customary Johnston raid on Glorious Goodwood. Timeform notes how Upper Class won a maiden at Ripon in smooth style last June despite looking green, and Endless Luck, another three-year-old, quickened away nicely at Musselburgh when opening his account last November. Being by Giant’s Causeway he will hopefully prove a typical Johnston battler, too.