Banshee did enough on debut three weeks ago to suggest serious consideration is worthwhile for the Maiden Fillies’ Stakes over six furlongs of ‘good to soft’ Haydock tonight when a bumper crowd can be expected at the popular Lancashire venue, providing current Covid-19 figures don’t suddenly influence and affect Conservative Government policy of returning numbers to sporting fixtures. It’s a possibility.
Despite optimistic assurance from Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and other high-profile politicians, the daily victim figures of this deadly disease have crept up alarmingly during the last fortnight and threatens chaos for the exciting European Football Championship, due to conclude at Wembley Stadium.
Italy’s Prime Minister has stated his players will not be allowed to travel to the United Kingdom, if they quality for the final tomorrow week, and he’s loathe to permit foreign visits to his beleaguered country, which had the highest Coronavirus rate world-wide at one point last year. It’s a massive dilemma and all bets could be off even though the tournament is about to enter its ‘last eight’ this weekend!’
Those with serious ‘investments’ must be on tenterhooks, given the rules and regulations of bookmaking profession ‘small print’ conditions, but I’m prepared to risk laying England on Betfair betting, at 9/4, to win three more games; after that ‘near miss’ against a moderate Germany side earlier this week there’s no guarantee the current favourites will beat Ukraine, a strong, determined side which is improving and could ‘kick them out’ in Rome tomorrow.
You may recall Zain Claudette landing our nap with an easy victory in a Newmarket maiden last week; prior to that she was a neck runner-up to Hellomydarlin at Goodwood where 40/1 shot Banshee was a creditable third, only three lengths away, with heavily-backed favourite, Income, in fourth. Strong, reliable time-handicap form.
A replication of this effort should be good enough for Banshee to beat eleven rivals and it’s significant trainer Brian O’Rourke has booked champion jockey Oisin Murphy for his prized Iffraaj filly which should not be opposed without good reason.
Bakersboy looks a solid, good-priced each-way bet for the eight-runner 3-y-o Novice Stakes over seven furlongs, a bad draw at Kempton last time beat this Oasis Dream gelding but, make sure they all run, for obvious reasons.
Running in tandem will be ‘good to firm’ Beverley where experienced Instinction is expected to go one better in the eleven-runner Fillies’ Novice Stakes over five furlongs; all signals are down for this fourth attempt. and Brian Smart’s charge, mount of Graham Lee, is napped!
Selections, Haydock, 6.08 Banshee (e.w); 8.08 Bakersboy (e.w). Beverley, 7.23 Instinction (nap).
Jeffrey Ross, horse-racing correspondent for WMN since 1983 when winning the most prestigious racing journalist award, Sporting Life Naps Table, before winning it a record number of six times collectively in the Racing Post, the current ‘trade’ paper, including 2019