MET FINAL FIELD POST YOUR VIEWS!

Good evening, I am aware we have had many posts and views on the MET, have made this thread a "sticky" for your latest inputs on what could be the highlight of the year.



1 POCKET POWER 58.0 120 (120) 10 A B Fayd'Herbe Mike Bass
2 BUY AND SELL 58.0 113 (113) 5 A T A Delpech Sean Tarry
3 AFRICAN APPEAL 58.0 104 (104) 15 A G Cheyne Mike Bass
4 KAPIL 56.0 110 (110) 12 A F Coetzee Stan Elley
5 CATMANDU 56.0 107 (107) 6 A T G Wrogemann Andre Kirsten
6 SURFIN' USA 56.0 107 (107) 11 A P Strydom Mark Dixon
7 VISION OF GRANDEUR 56.0 104 (104) 9 B A A Fortune Darryl Hodgson
8 GREAT RHYTHM 56.0 103 (103) 4 A R Hill Herman Brown
9 FLOATYOURBOAT 56.0 101 (101) 2 A T M Byleveld Mike Bass
10 GOLDEN DICE 56.0 99 ( 99) 7 A F Anthony Darryl Hodgson
11 PRINCE ASAD 56.0 99 ( 99) 1 B A J Geroudis Geoff Woodruff
12 QUICK MILLIONS 56.0 93 ( 93) 8 B A ............... Glen Puller
13 DANCER'S DAUGHTER 55.5 114 (114) 13 A K Shea Justin Snaith
14 IVORY TRAIL 55.5 109 (108) 16 A R Fourie Joey Ramsden
15 CASEY'S SON 55.5 101 (100) 3 A N Roebuck J Butterworth
16 RIVER JETEZ 53.5 102 (102) 14 A G Hatt Mike Bass

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Interesting draws with POCKET a 10 and DD a 13.....who will make the pace??

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Why hasnt Kahn got a ride

Quick Millions will set a good gallop(if they can find someone to ride it)
Otherwise perhaps Floatyourboat will be 'used'

The J&B Met final field selected itself when only 16 of the entrants stood their ground. The merit ratings of the field range from the Mike Bass-trained Pocket Power on 120 down to the Glen Puller-trained Quick Millions on 93. Pocket Power has a great chance of writing a new chapter in South African horseracing history by winning the big race for the third year in succession and drew well at 10.



The Justin Snaith-trained Dancer’s Daughter, who is the second-highest rated horse in the race on 114, receives 2,5kg from Pocket Power as opposed to 5kg when dead-heating with him in the Vodacom Durban July and drew wider at 13. One of the best weighted on recent results is another five-year-old mare, the Bass-trained River Jetez, who beat Dancer’s Daughter in the Grade I TBA Paddock Stakes over 1800m and is 2kg better off with her here. However, Dancer’s Daughter was clearly below par then and this amazing grey, who has almost freakish ability, remains the main threat to Pocket Power for the Met. It would be a foolish man who has written her off on the grounds of one performance as she has proved in the past that she does bounce back from her rare flat performances.



There are five raiders in the field. Buy And Sell from the Sean Tarry yard will attempt to do better than his fourth place finish last season but he is 0,5kg worse off with Pocket Power than last year. The Andre Kirsten-trained Catmandu, who ran fourth in a 1600m handicap at Turffontein on Saturday, will receive only 2kg from Pocket Power as opposed to 4kg when beaten 4,35 lengths in the July. The Mark Dixon-trained Surfin’ USA could be one of the better candidates to cause an upset as he charged through impressively to win the Grade 2 Midmar Premier Trophy over 1800m on December 12. This horse runs best fresh and has been given a break since. He does, however, only receive 2kg from Pocket Power as opposed to 5kg when beaten a head by the champion, who was at the time probably below par, in the Grade 1 Champions Cup over 1800m at Clairwood last July.



The Herman Brown-trained Great Rhythm is 0,5kg worse off with the Joey Ramsden-trained Ivory Trail since being beaten 3,75 lengths by him in the Grade 2 Peninsula Handicap over 1800m at Kenilworth. Ivory Trail’s win in that race makes him a place contender here. The fifth raider is the Geoff Woodruff-trained Prince Asad, who finished a five-length fourth to Rudra in the Steinhoff International Summer Cup, despite receiving 0,5kg. This horse has not reached the same heights as when hacking up by 4,25 lengths in last season’s J&B Reserve Stayers over 2800m, beating River Jetez, whom he faces here on the same terms. Bass’s Floatyourboat turned into a useful pacemaker for Pocket Power in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and it will be interesting to see if he goes to the front again. MJ Byleveld rides him as Dean Kannemeyer has opted to run Le Drakkar in the Investec Cape Derby. Bass’s fourth runner, African Appeal, finished a 1,25 length third to Pocket Power two years ago and is now 1kg better off, which would give him a shout on paper. However, this seven-year-old has a lot to do to reverse form with both Surfin’ USA and Pocket Power on Premier Trophy and Queen’s Plate form respectively.



The Stan Elley-trained Kapil was well beaten in the Dubai Duty Free over 1777m in 2007, his only try at further than 1600m. He faces Pocket Power on the same terms as when running on well to finish just 1,5 lengths behind him in the Queen’s Plate. Considering his speed, he would probably appreciate a slow pace. The Darryl Hodgson-trained Vison Of Grandeur will be ridden by Andrew Fortune and this well bred Irish import could be one of the dark horses, although he was well beaten in the Queen’s Plate. Hodgson also runs Golden Dice, who looks outclassed as does the James Butterworth-trained Casey’s Son.

Confident talk from the Tarry stable re Buy and Sell. Has beaten PP 3 times and although at the weights tough task only runner in my view who could topple PP. In Queens Plate he was wide round bend and in straight cut to the inside rail costing him lengths and also I dont think really pushed. so BIG danger with top jockey.

Has never gone close to beating PP in races at Kenilworth

Much has been said about the pace at which the Paddock Stakes and Queens Plate were run.
The race commentator said during the Paddock Stakes “they’re not going very fast” and during the Queen’s Plate “they’re going a good gallop” - or words to that effect.
These comments were echoed post-race by Bloomberg, among others.

Pity no-one thought to consult their stopwatches, for split times for the races don’t quite support the apparent evidence.

Our handtimes (normally about half a second out) show the following for the distances from the start to the entrance of the straight, and then the last 600m.
Time is taken for the leader of the race, so it needs interpretation to see the picture properly.

The Paddock Stakes was over 1800m.
First 1200m went in 74.4 seconds, equivalent to 62 seconds per 1000m.
The final 600m went in 36.3, which is equivalent to 60.5/1000m.
The overall racetime translates to 61.6/1000m.
The first three home all came from off the pace.
Dancer’s Daughter seemed to lack the immediate acceleration needed (or maybe was waited with too long), but was gaining at the end of the race.

There was another 1800m race on the card, the Listed event won by Robinson Crusoe. The first split was the same as the Paddock Stakes, the final time marginally faster (61.4/1000m), the winner coming from off the pace.

The Queen’s Plate was the only 1600m race on the card.
When I first studied the splits I thought the stalls must have been in the wrong place.
It looked positively weird.
A thorough check showed the timing was spot on, though.
It went like this:
First 1000m in 63.9 seconds.
Last 600m went in 34.5, equivalent to 57.4/1000m. Final time equated to 61.5/1000m.
The first three all came from off the pace, so their final 600m was faster than 57.4/1000. Truly awesome for all three of them.

Interesting when the overall times for the three races are compared, brought down to an average per 1000m.
Robinson Crusoe 61.4
Pocket Power 61.5
Emblem Of Liberty 61.6
Pretty much the same, and yet how different the early pace was in those races.
Quite a case for the benefits of sectional timing.

How to interpret this.
* It seems Pocket Power will not be inconvenienced at whatever pace the Met will be run. He won’t need a pacemaker.
*It seems that a slowish run Met might bring Kapil into the picture, as he will be 2kg better off with PP.
Kapil ran a 111 over 1800m in Dubai last year, and although he probably is best over a mile, a 111 makes it necessary for PP to run a 116 to beat him.
*It seems that Dancer’s Daughter may have found a mile too sharp (or wasn’t 100% on the day); a good pace over the 2000m of the Met may be to her advantage. The slower they go, the lesser her chances, or so it seems.

You may want to expand on this with other thoughts.

It looks like the only real vulnerability PP has is when he is just too far off them. His defeats are normally dramatic affairs where he has just left himself with too much to do. If ever they wanted to beat PP, the QP looks like the milers had their chance to outsprint PP, and still they couldn't do it.

If PP is close to DD in the running of the Met, one would have to argue that he can out accelerate her. In the July DD managed to swoop down on him and have tremendous momentum at the line whilst he had hit the front just before.

It's hard to find a strategy to beat PP if he's in touch, he's fast when they go fast and he's lightning when they go slow. Explains all his Gr1's I guess.

I would like to see DD a tad closer to the pace - the first one out of PP & DD to 'go' will win inmho.

May the best athlete win!

Jim