During elections, said H.L. Mencken, all the parties rush around the country insisting that the others are unfit to govern — and in the end they are all proved right. I don’t bet on politics because as a part-time political commentator I don’t want to be accused of letting wagers colour my judgment, but I did advise my friends last autumn to back a hung Parliament when you could still get 4–1 against. The Twelve to Follow over the jumps I named then have not stood the test of time quite so well.
Two never made it to the track, but five managed to win and we had half a dozen seconds. The most enjoyable victory was the 14–1 success of the Evan Williams-trained Pheidippides at Kempton. He has undoubted class and will be worth watching over fences next season.
Philip Hobbs’s hurdlers Clova Island and Quinz both obliged, at 6–1 and 9–4 respectively.
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