Mr Tobin goes for four in a row on the sand
Trainer Sean Tarry has come a long way since his first feature victory with the gallant Sorevof in the 1997 John Breval Memorial at Newmarket. Fifteen years on he is one of our leading sand surface specialists and he holds the key to the R200 000 Listed Highveld Sand Challenge at the Vaal on Tuesday.
Tarry has become quite accustomed to keeping a watchful eye over his shoulder on his good friend and colleague Mike De Kock and these two horsemen dominate the top two positions on the national trainer championship. De Kock holds the upper hand by an almost embarrassing R6 million in stakes.
Argentina
Tuesday’s feature duel between the two powerful yards looks poised to be settled by two talented Argentinian-bred geldings.The Listed Highveld Sand Challenge to be run over the testing mile could see Mike De Kock’s imposing grey Hennessy, Empenoso Henn breathing down the neck of the consistent son of Numerous, Mr Tobin, who is attempting a fourth straight win over the course and distance.
The punting poser essentially revolves around a seasoned sand street fighter versus a still improving four year old with an infinite stamp of class about him and a winning turnaround in the weights in his favour
Mr Tobin has found his calling on the sand after winning his maiden on grass over 1800m at his fourth start. He has a splendid unbeaten record of five wins on the sand surface and the only time he and Empenoso Henn met previously, he beat the younger horse by 2,25 lengths in the Vaal River Handicap over 1800m on Emerald Cup day. Mr Tobin was receiving 5,5 kgs that day.
Rules
The game will be played under slightly different terms on Tuesday though, as Mr Tobin has to give the De Kock horse 2,5 kgs over 200m shorter. Which means a turnaround of 8 kgs and implies a simple winning advantage for Empenoso Henn. Throw in the fact that he jumps from the number 1 draw and that his grass form includes some really smart efforts, and suddenly the De Kock runner looks a huge factor. He has contested five of his ten starts in features. That with a trainer who doesn’t suffer fools when it comes to overrating thoroughbred ability.
After winning his first two career starts, Empenoso Henn was deemed good enough to contest the Gr1 Daily News at Greyville. In a blanket finish he went home empty handed but only finished 3,7 lengths off The Apache. He won an MR100 Handicap over 1450m in great style in December beating House Of Wax and then ran two commendable placed efforts in listed company.
Trio
De Kock has two other strings to his bow. The best of these is Meadow Magic who reverts to the sand after a blank spell on turf. He won two good races on the sand in late 2011 and finished 0,25 lengths ahead of Empenoso Henn in the Listed Drum Star, when receiving 4kgs from him. They run at level weights here on a different surface.
Badger Lake started his racing career in promising fashion with Stan Elley in Cape Town and left Phillippi a four time winner from nine starts to join the De Kock yard in a change of ownership. He has only won one race in eight starts and tries the sand after a rest of over four months. He has been disappointing and should battle here.
Roy Magner’s Eastern Cobbler is a fit Al Mufti gelding who has registered six of his seven career wins on the sand. If he repeats his run in South Africa’s richest sand race, the Emerald Cup of 2011, when finishing 1,75 lengths second to The Mouseketeer when giving him 1,5kgs, he must come into the reckoning.
Pacesetter
Kimberley trainer Sean Miller is sending out the winners from Scottsville to Flamingo Park and he saddles Water Jet. This game Jet Master gelding’s last win at the Vaal is way back in September 2008 and he looks up against it as a poorly drawn seven year old.
Pimp My Ride is a fit horse who tries hard and is the likely pacesetter. But he cannot beat Mr Tobin on their last meeting and looks a touch outclassed. St John Gray’s Turkey Shoot returns from a rest and should need the outing. He would have a squeak on his run in the Vaal River Handicap when finishing 6,5 lengths off Mr Tobin when giving him 2kgs. On Tuesday he receives 7,5kgs from the topweight. But the reality is that Mr Tobin has gone from strength to strength since that feature in September 2011.
Mr Tobin’s ascending star is what swings our assessment of this race. On the basis of their single clash, Empenoso Henn has the Tarry horse beaten at these weights. But even at six years of age, Mr Tobin is patently on the up and in the form of his life. There is also no substitute for experience and if it comes down to a dirty scrap over the final 200m, he will not go down without a fight. We select him to continue on his winning ways at the expense of Empenoso Henn and Eastern Cobbler.
