With his yard located less than 10 miles away the Coral Gold Cup Weekend at Newbury is rightly regarded as a key home fixture for trainer Harry Derham.
It has already been a successful campaign for the former jockey, who celebrated his first Grade Two success since taking out his licence to train in 2022 thanks to the victory of One Horse Town in the JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle at Cheltenham on Saturday.
On the back of that victory Derham, who is the nephew of 14-time champion trainer Paul Nicholls, is now assembling an exciting looking team full of potential to represent him at the Berkshire track later this month.
With the exception of stable stalwart Dargiannini, the rest of those the Boxford handler intends to take to the meeting all fall into the ‘could be anything’ bracket given the relative inexperience each of them have.
And after being pleased with how those in contention to fly the flag for his burgeoning operation across the two-day meeting, where more than £800,000 is up for grabs, worked at the annual gallops morning at the track on Tuesday, Derham is rightly excited.
He said: “They are six of my best horses I’m looking at taking here so I wouldn’t want to say there is one more than the other I’m looking forward to as I don’t have many horses like those ones.
“This is a big meeting for us as it is ten minutes down the road for us. It is a massive meeting in the season and by design we are sending some of our best horses here.”
Friday
JUST ENNEMI (Coral Racing Club Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase/Coral John Francome Novices’ Chase)
“He could go to the John Francome or he could go to the novices’ handicap chase, which are both on the Friday. He needs to school again, but he looked ready to run there and he will run in one of those two races I suspect.
“I was extremely keen to get him back at David Maxwell’s dispersal sale as I think he is a good horse. I don’t think I’ve got many like him.
“He has not run for a very long time, and it is not all about his first run of the season. I didn’t want anyone else to have him, but he has got to go and do it now.
“Everything has been great with him, and everything was great with him last season, but David didn’t want to run him and I think we did the right thing by him.
“He has schooled very well over fences and he is a smart horse.”
MOSSY FEN ROAD (Play Coral “Racing-Super-Series” For Free National Hunt Maiden Hurdle)
“We ran him up in the Grade Two bumper at Aintree, but the ground was too quick. We thought the experience would do him good and I don’t think it did him any harm.
"I think it put some manners on him as up until then he galloped around Wetherby and basically hacked up and didn’t learn much at all.
"He could go to Newbury on the Friday, but the ground would need to be soft for him to run as he needs cut in the ground.
“I think he is well above average.”
Saturday
CLONDAW PARK (Play Coral “Racing-Super-Series” Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle)
“She went very nicely and will probably run in the Listed mares novices’ hurdle first time out. I don’t think she is useless if I’m running her there!
“She is a very nice horse. If she got beat it wouldn’t bother me. Sometimes getting beat the first time out is not the worst thing in the world to happen.
“She goes very well and I’m an enormous fan from what I’ve seen already from her. This will be a nice place to take her.
“She has got very supportive owners and my view is that if she runs well and finishes third or fourth she can go in a mares maiden hurdle at Christmas time, and she will have had a brilliant experience.
“If she wins then she is even better than I think she is. She is a smart horse and she will handle herself well."
DARGIANNINI (Coral “Daily Rewards Shaker” Handicap Hurdle)
“He is just a wonderful horse. He will run in the two and a half mile handicap hurdle on the Saturday.
"He has won here before, but he is not getting any younger.
"I think he still retains all of his class. He is still plenty high enough in the handicap, where he might find it tough to win, but he is in wonderful nick.
"He tanked around Newbury under Megan (Nicholls) with a big weight cloth and I’m looking forward to running him.”
KIWI RUSH (Coral “We’re Here For It” Novices’ Hurdle)
“He will run in the two and a half mile novices’ hurdle which will be a proper race I’m sure, but I really like him.
“I suspect there will be a couple better than him, but he is a nice horse that jumps great. The idea is to run there then run again at Christmas time.
“He went to Kelso twice last season. We tried to win the valuable final up there and it didn’t quite come off as he finished second.
“We were always killing a season last season to go hurdling this season though. I hope he is better than Givemefive (who Smash GC Racing owned) as he is about three times as big.
“Givemefive was a flat horse who did well over hurdles, whereas I hope Kiwi Rush, in two years time, is galloping here ahead of a Coral Gold Cup.
“Whether he will be that class or not I’ve got no idea, but I hope he will be.”
VIYANNI (Coral Racing Club Intermediate Handicap Hurdle (registered as the Gerry Feilden)
“His juvenile form was pretty good. We’ve intentionally not run him as we think he is well treated. The Gerry Feilden is a big ask with a horse of experience.
"I needed him to have a good blow out there, and he did. Daryl (Jacob) was very pleased with him.
“He will go to the Gerry Feilden and he will be a lively contender. Epatante won it before, so if there is a horse like that in there, we won’t be winning it.
“I think he is a decent horse and he will end up wanting further than two miles, but he has enough pace for that first time out as long as there is a bit of dig in the ground.
“I was gutted that he missed the Fred Winter, but he is not just a juvenile as he has got plenty of size and scope, and it might have been a blessing in disguise.
“He is a nice horse and he has not had a hard time already. We are looking forward to running him.”
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