To lose
their chance at Festival glory in the most exciting race of them all (arguably)
on the day before the race must have been agonising for the connections of
Melodic Rendezvous. His season had been carefully orchestrated by Jeremy Scott
and he was among the leading contenders for the Supreme until fate intervened.
Last season, despite not getting the opportunity to prove me right or wrong, I
suspect I was guilty of underrating Melodic Rendezvous. The horses he beat
often appeared to have valid excuses and I struggled to get too excited about
him but in reality he was a rapidly progressing novice set to peak for
Cheltenham. His performance at Wincanton on Saturday certainly gave an
indication of what he might have achieved had he made it to the start.
Defeating a fully fit Far West in that manner was hugely impressive and I will
try not to underestimate him in future. This season, Minella Foru might fit
into the same mould as Melodic Rendezvous in that he is easy to underrate and excuses
for his main rival on Sunday were evident for all to see.
Minella Foru began his hurdling career
in good style at Listowel, having previously
taken the eye of point-to-point followers at Lemonfield, yet despite Eddie
Harty not hiding the regard in which he is held the four-year-old was still
trumped in the Navan market on Sunday by Gigginstown’s exciting prospect, Very
Wood. The pace set by the market leader was ponderous at best, but Minella Foru
dealt with it well. He was keen but not in a way that would prove detrimental
to his chances, while his jumping was little short of ideal for a two mile
novice hurdler. There was barely a semblance of a mistake, so swift over the obstacles;
he hurdled with a fluency that was all the more striking given the leader’s
antics. As the pace quickened from the third last, Minella Foru responded
willingly to his rider AP McCoy’s urgings, picking up well to reach and pass
Very Wood. This performance showed off plenty of Minella Foru’s assets,
particularly his speed which will serve him well as he steps up in class but as
a contest the race was somewhat unsatisfactory and his superiority over the
second, at the line, could be misleading.
Very Wood was among a batch of point-to-pointers
who were trained by Gordon Elliott before being sent elsewhere for their novice
hurdle careers. Following a narrow defeat in his first point-to-point, Very
Wood took his second in style defeating Champagne Tara, a bumper winner for
Jonjo O’Neill since, by four lengths. Before losing him for this season,
Elliott ran him in a lucrative Punchestown Festival bumper in which he again
ran out an easy winner. One could not help but look forward to his future over
obstacles after that and, having moved to Noel Meade, he delivered what many
expected on his hurdling debut at Galway. Davy Russell gradually wound the race
up from the front pulling nicely clear of the second and a long way clear of
the third. He shaped like a relentless galloper on this occasion with a step up
in trip looking inevitable. Noel Meade clearly didn’t share that view, deciding
instead to stick to two miles on Sunday. There was enough to take from his
previous run to suggest he could remain successful over the minimum trip,
assuming he could gallop his rivals into submission. Very Wood’s jumping around
the right-handed Galway was adequate, with no causes for concern, and
connections were confident of a smart performance.
If Minella
Foru is a serious candidate for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle then going down a
length-and-a-half was a smart performance for a horse like Very Wood who is a
classic Gigginstown prospect, unlikely to reach his full potential until he
sees three miles and fences. Very Wood and Minella Foru are different types of
horses and the sprint for home would have suited the former far less than the
latter. Davy Russell, making the running on Very Wood, had the opportunity to
set a real test but his mount did very little to help their cause. He lugged
right from the start, jumped out to the right at each hurdle, with varying
degrees of severity, and even struggled to navigate some of the left-handed
bends. He must have given away a significant amount of ground to his rivals and
it is tempting to think that without the wayward tendencies or on a right-handed
track, he would have come out on top. However, it also the case that Very Wood
was better placed for the sprint finish, than the resulting winner, having had
his own way out in front. While AP McCoy, renowned for his strength in a finish
when necessary, was hardly all out to settle matters aboard Minella Foru.
Such was the
farcical nature of the race it is difficult to draw too many conclusions about
the respective merits of the front two. In terms of the Supreme, Very Wood was
always more likely to excel over further and, now there appears to be a problem
with left-handed tracks, connections may already be looking past Cheltenham to
Punchestown for their long term targets. I am trying to keep an open mind with
regards to Minella Foru. There is the slight possibility that Very Wood is
exceptional and Minella Foru did well to beat him but
if he wants to become a top two mile novice he would have to beat a stayer like
Very Wood in this manner especially considering the circumstances. Eddie Harty
has suggested that his next run will be in the Royal Bond Novice Hurdle on
December 1 or the Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown's Christmas
meeting. Either way we will learn more about his Supreme credentials then as he
takes on the best available in Ireland. Despite his precise jumping and rare
natural speed the likelihood of meeting rivals from higher profile yards means
he may well be underestimated again.
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