Weekend Jottings

Today there are three jumps cards taking place at Perth, Stratford and Southwell.  The question I would like to ask is, why on earth could one of these meetings not have been swapped with one of the six flat cards that took place yesterday?  Yet another victory for race planning!  I must be missing something or am I being thick...come to think of it, don't answer that one!  Stable jockeys Tom Scudamore and Conor O'Farrell both travel to Southwell for rides - Conor has just the one...we will see if that theory I was talking about earlier in the week works!

I was taking a look through the ante-post markets for the Ebor and noticed a 16/1 shot of John Gosden's called Flying Officer.  Martin used to have a horse by the same name and he was the first and only horse I ever rode up the gallops.  Back then David was still at school and he was my riding insructor (I should have known better then!), anyway, he kept telling me 'this is where I fell off and got dragged!'...it frigthened the life out of me!

There was an excellent tribute to David Johnson on the Morning Line yesterday with Alistair Down.  I am really going to miss DJ and our long chats about our beloved West Ham.  A great owner, but better than that, a great person.

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I am told that fishing is lucky, yet James Dent was backed from 12/1 into 6/1 to win 'Fish'O'Mania' at the Cudmore Fisheries.  If he wins I can imagine a few of the bookies protesting that something fishy has gone on!  They will probably tell them to sling their hooks, boom boom!

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I see that former Australian great spin bowler Shane Warne has been moaning about the umpire in the First Test of the Ashes series, claiming he has 'no idea'.  It's good to hear the Aussies whinging...they don't like it up 'em!