Weekend Jottings

There are just two jumps cards at Ludlow and Plumpton this afternoon.  The stable has one runner at each meeting; Barton Stacey (pictured above) makes his chasing debut at Ludlow under Conor O'Farrell in a decent looking contest worth £12,000.  Unsurprisingly it has attracted a decent field but our runner has some experience over larger obstacles as a winning point-to-pointer - the Nicholls runner Sin Bin looks like the one to beat in this novices' handicap chase.  Meanwhile, A Hairy Koala makes his racecourse debut in the bumper at Plumpton and he will be partnered by Tom Scu.  There is some excellent prize money up for grabs considering the size of the tracks - Ludlow have races worth £18,000, £12,000 (twice) and £10,000, while Plumpton's cards features a boys' race worth £15,000.  A big pat on the back for both courses!

My mate who is renowned as something of an expert on the flat, tells me that Aiden O'Brien's yard normally hits peak form in June.  Hardly suprising when you consider that June sees the Derby meeting at Epsom as well as Royal Ascot's fixture.  I thought that Australia ran a great Derby Trial when finishing a close third in the 2,000 Guineas and looks to be the one they all have to beat come the big race.  Having said that, odds of 6/4 are not exactly generous and I can't see him being much shorter than that come the day, especially when you consider how much can go wrong in that space of time.

*****

Apparently my beloved West Ham could be on the verge of sacking manager Sam Allardyce.  A survey of 12,000 Hammers fans suggested that almost 78% of the supporters wanted him out even though they remain in the Premiership.  Personally, I don't like the defensive nature of play but he has done a good job of keeping them up, while Sunderland's manager Gus Poyet could also be on his way out of the door as he wants greater control over the club's football operations.

They have both done well really when you come to think of it, only the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal look likely to challenge for the title over the next few years.  Manchester United look as though they will need a little bit of time to get back into that elite group.

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