The Shadow

THE HAWK IS HOVERING

20 April 2009

First off I must set at rest the minds of the members of  the Southwark News Racing Club that our baby filly born to Newsflash on 2nd April is doing well and the crisis which required her to have plasma transfusions seems to have passed. 

I went up to see mother and baby last Saturday and they were out in the paddock enjoying a little sunshine. I wish I could say it was a lovely spring day but it was not too bad and at least the cold wind had dropped and it was not raining.

Our new filly looks to be a very sizeable foal and with her appetite I think we can hope to see her grow strong and muscular just like Flash. She will be a lovely golden chestnut in colour with a big white diamond blaze on her brow.
The other important news for the club and for us all really because through these pages I want to share the thrills of going racing with our own hosses is the progress of our two year old filly we have called Southwark Newshawk.

You will see from the photograph I took of her last week that she is very good looking with a fine head and a very intelligent eye. She has not grown as much as I had hoped over the winter and is only a little gal but the word I am getting back from the work riders is that she is speedy.

How speedy only time will tell. We have her pencilled in for her first race at Yarmouth on Thursday 30th April in the 5.30 first race on the evening card. The reason I have chosen that meeting for her debut is because it does not involve a long journey in the transporter which can be very upsetting for a two year old and also because it will be a very quiet meeting with a small crowd.

It is one of the meetings which was originally allocated to the moribund Great Leighs track and is certain to be quiet.
I made the very silly mistake a few years back of allowing Mark Polglase to enter a two year old filly of mine for her first race at a bank holiday meeting at York.

The crowd terrified her and she bolted through the car park and through the public enclosures. She was never the same again and I do not want a repeat of that fiasco.
I have no idea who will be riding her at the moment. Mrs Dunnett likes to put John Egan up on her young hosses because he is a very good judge and very forthright. Much depends on who is available on the night.

One of the problems which Mrs Dunnett faces is that the handicapper does not give her the credit she deserves. She is brilliant at getting cheap hosses to win races but the handicapper tends to rate the animals by how many guineas they cost.

A typical example was the running of her two year old Avec Moi at Nottingham last week.
The filly ran well in a high grade race being beaten only nine lengths by the winner which cost 179,000 guineas as a yearling. The handicapper gave Avec Moi a rating of 35 which is about as low as you can get and more importantly makes it very difficult to get the filly into future races.

It works the other way of course when the stable's hosses are unfairly rubbished. I very nearly had the betting coup of the century when I backed her Thumberlina on the same card at 200-1.   I had a ton each way and she only just failed to get third place despite missing the break by miles.   She will win next time out but she will not be 200-1.   More like 2-1.

The only hoss I have for you to back in the coming week is a bit vague. I have made a new contact with a very sharp young man who is the nephew of a very famous trainer.

He has told me to back After The Show wherever it runs. t was due to race at Warwick on Monday but was withdrawn. Just keep your eye open for it in the coming days, I think it is a bit of good information.  will keep you posted about the 30th.

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