Straight Back To Work
Three days after landing his sixth Hollywoodbets Durban July with Note To Self — a result that completed a Snaith one-two (Wish List filled second) and drew him level with the legendary Terrence Millard on the July honour roll, one behind Syd Laird’s record seven — Justin Snaith could easily have taken a Saturday off to enjoy it. Instead, his string turned up at Durbanville and went to work.
By the time the card was done, the Philippi yard had saddled four winners from the eight races on offer, and came within a length or two of a fifth.
Four Down At The Country Track
The account opened early, with the two-year-old Mordechai getting up in race two under Craig Zackey. One race later, Zackey and the stable were celebrating again as the juvenile Spanish World took race three — with stablemate Odds And Evens chasing her home for a Snaith one-two, echoing the finish at Greyville just days before.
Protector of Peace, a three-year-old who’d been knocking on the door with a string of place finishes, added a third for the yard in race five under Sifisokuhle Bungane. Gold Giboski, another improving three-year-old, rounded things off in style in race eight with Mpumelelo Mjoka in the saddle.
Not everything went the yard’s way — the unbeaten juvenile One Magic, sent out with plenty of confidence behind him in race seven, found this one a step too far and had to settle for a lesson rather than a fourth straight win. Even the best strings have days like that; it’s what makes the four winners around it stand out all the more.
A Country Track That Rewards Form
Durbanville doesn’t have Greyville’s stage or Kenilworth’s history, but its tight, left-handed turn — 2000m in circumference with no separate straight — has a way of exposing a yard that isn’t fully wound up. On this evidence, three days removed from the biggest night of the South African racing calendar, the Snaith team was about as sharp as it gets.
If you’re following today’s Durbanville card, the full racecard and form guide is at cfox.co.za/predictions.
