Hi Sandgroper,

See there are some WA visitors racing at Flemington today. Apart from Northerly, we have Tribula - race 7 - S J Miller and Golden Delicious - race 8 - J J Brown. The latter has good recent form as well as wet track form. How do you rate their chances today?

In the press over here this morning, Tribula is listed at 20/1 and Golden Delicious is listed at 9/2.

Tribula will be all the better for 1st run over your way (3rd after spell), and I see was only beaten 2.8 len. Distance and set weights today will suit, can handle dead track - untried on anything worse. Great EW bet!

Golden Delicious has been over your way before, won a 1000m race at MV from memory. Connections confident, but must admit I think GD is a bit overrated. I'm prepared to watch GD go around, especially at any odds under 10/1.

Good luck to the connections of both Tribula & Golden Delicious, and of course Northerly - whose task today will be his hardest to date.

_________________
All the best from the West

Sandgroper :smile:

[ This Message was edited by: Sandgroper on 2002-10-05 09:47 ]

Thought both Tribula and Golden Delicious ran top races. Tribula looked to be crowded in the straight, finished just behind the placegetters. Golden Delicious looked to have it won, but died a little at the end to finish just out of a place. Northerly goes from strength to strength. I think Northerly is still better suited in Cox at WFA and not the CC / MC. Your thoughts Sandgroper / other West Aussies?

I think Northerly is best suited to weight for age as he meets all others on fairly equal terms. I don't think there is a horse racing in Australia at the moment that can beat Northerly at equal weights. He is not the most brilliant racehorse but he certainly must be the gutsiest. He refuses to let other horses go past him and he eventually wears them into the ground.
He will get beaten again, and probably fairly soon, as in todays racing horses cannot go on winning forever (Victory Vein!). However at the moment we all should just marvel at this magnificent racehorse as he won't be around forever.

Golden Delicious should win her share of races against better-than-average sprinters. Her record now is 16 starts for 9 wins and 3 2nds. Raced twice in Melbourne last spring for a 1st and 5th. hasn't run beyond 1200 metres.
As Crofty said Northerly is a plodder and he can't concede a weight advantage to top horses. That said, the only horse I've seen that had a better nose for the winning post was Better Loosen Up. He's in that class.