Betway Novice Stakes

Off time: 16:01 | Winning time: 1m 15.48s

(5)

Haader¹⁸

Age: 4| Weight: 9-2| J: Raul Da Silva| T: D Shaw| OR: 70

20/1

Cost €120,000 as a juvenile but was sold at a knockdown price of 1,000gns in July 2018; 0-2 for this trainer and turned in a rather tepid effort over this trip at Chelmsford (finished sixth of seven) latest.

Form: 5/9-66

(1)

Poet's Pride¹⁰

Age: 4| Weight: 9-2| J: B A Curtis| T: T D Barron| OR: 63

6/5

More than capable of finding a small race somewhere eventually, and this is far from the strongest of novice contests; feasible that he'll improve for a recent C&D run (his first start since August); type to require a strong early gallop over 6f.

Form: 34/744-4

(2)

Snooze Button¹⁸

Age: 4| Weight: 9-2| J: Nicola Currie| T: J A Osborne

16/1

Cost €50,000 as a juvenile (as a brother to the 1m-1m2f winner Toffee Apple); arrived late to action, only making his debut when finishing just under 12L fourth of seven (Haader sixth) in a 6f Chelmsford novice last month.

Form: 4

(4)

Playfull Spirit^p¹²

Age: 4| Weight: 8-11| J: K T O'Neill| T: J & T Gosden| OR: 69| BF

1/1

Eight-race maiden; one-paced towards the finish when a beaten 11/8f over 7f at Newcastle latest (in first-time cheekpieces); surely won't find a better winning opportunity than this 6f contest; clearly the horse to beat if taking to Fibresand.

Form: 4363-32

(3)

Polished Article²⁷

Age: 4| Weight: 8-11| J: Phil Dennis⁽³⁾| T: L A Mullaney

80/1

From a 1m winning dam; low-key so far (0-2), although did bump into a couple of reasonably talented horses (Dawn Delight and Master Diver) over 6f at Newcastle latest; denied the opportunity to race there on February 1st (by snow).

Form: 5-5

Forecasts

Playfull Spirit (1/1), Poet's Pride (6/5), Snooze Button (16/1), Haader (20/1), Polished Article (80/1)

A novice contest which has attracted a small field of older horses (all four-year-old's) so it's perfectly fair to state that this isn't a competitive race. Poet's Pride could strip fitter for a recent run although will require an end-to-end gallop over this 6f trip (stays further). Therefore, the most logical option is the admittedly exposed PLAYFULL SPIRIT. Her bare AW form on Tapeta at Newcastle isn't anything out of the ordinary, and she's obviously well down the pecking order within her yard but assuming she takes to this more demanding surface (Fibresand) she rates as the likeliest winner.