Pair Of Seconds

There are five meetings taking place this afternoon, but if you are a fan of the jumps you are out of luck.  There are flat fixtures from Yarmouth, Haydock, Ripon, Carlisle and Sandown but not a jumps meeting to be seen.  The best of the action comes from Sandown this evening where they host a Listed contest as well as a pair of Group 3's.  The Brigadier Gerard Stakes at 7.25pm looks to be a fascinating renewal despite only attracting six runners.  Mostahdaf, Addeybb and Bay Bridge look to be the main protagonists and should make for an exciting race.

Unsurprisingly, there are no runners from the stable today, although there is still plenty to be done and David is at the Newmarket Sales where some promising young horses in training go through the ring today.

We were out of luck at Newton Abbot yesterday with the three David Pipe Racing Club runners yielding two second places.  Ben Lilly finished runner-up in the maiden hurdle with 42 lengths back to the third.  He should be winning races over timber based on this evidence.

Miss M produced a sound first effort over fences, finishing second in the 2m5f novices' handicap chase.  She jumped well on the whole and with this experience under her belt, she is another who should be winning sooner rather than later.

*****

There was a mixed bag for the Brits in the French Open tennis yesterday with Emma Raducanu losing her second round match, folding like a deck of cards en route to a 6-3 1-6 1-6 defeat.  Cameron Norrie fared better in the men's event, winning his match in straight sets.

*****

I asked my wife if I was the only one she ever slept with.  She said, "Yes, the others were all 7's or 8's."