with leader, led over 1f out, soon edged right, ridden out
with leader, ridden and hung left over 1f out, weakened final furlong
led, ridden and headed over 1f out, kept on same pace inside final furlong
slowly into stride, outpaced and behind halfway, ridden and stayed on inside final furlong, never dangerous
held up in rear, ridden and headway over 2f out, weakened final furlong
chased leaders, outpaced halfway, ridden and kept on well inside final furlong
Only A Game is selected in preference to Shipboard Romance and Woodcote Wildcat. Only A Game was the subject of strong racecourse whispers ahead of his debut and made no mistake in a similar event at Lingfield. If he can translate that ability to the turf, he appears difficult to beat on paper. Shipboard Romance is bred for speed and appears to handle any surface. She could be the one to prosper should the selection err. Woodcote Wildcat has to be respected given the form of the Neville Callaghan stable. Wicksy Creek ran a solid enough race over six furlongs at the course on soft going. Sharp's Gold was well backed ahead of a similar assignment on debut but was never sighted. Only A Game brings a flawless record to the table and gets the nod this afternoon.
Only A Game (IRE) 4-6fav (8-11) Awkward start, ran green, soon chasing leading pair, outpaced halfway, rallied approaching final furlong, ran on to lead towards finish, won at Lingfield 5f 2yo sll (6) pol beating Areweplayingout (8-11) by a nk, 7 ran.
Rannoch 20-1 (8-6) Chased leaders, ridden and weakened 2f out, 4th of 7, 7l behind Only A Game (8-11) at Lingfield 5f 2yo sll (6) pol.
Wicksy Creek 11-2 (8-8) Held up in touch, ridden and edge left over 1f out, kept on one pace, 4th of 9, 7l behind Secret Meaning (8-3) at Yarmouth 6f 2yo sll (6) sft.
Birdsville 100-1 (8-7) Always towards rear, 10th of 14, 16l behind Gypsy Baby (8-12) at Folkestone 7f 2yo mdn auc (5) sft in Jun.
Emily's Dens Joy (IRE) 100-1 (9-0) Prominent over 3f, last of 13, 12l behind Mookhlesa (9-0) at Newmarket 5f 2yo mdn fll (4) gf in Apr.
Sharps Gold 11-2 (8-7) Held up, ridden halfway, never dangerous, 5th of 6, 10l behind Longoria (8-6) at Yarmouth 5f 2yo sll (6) gd in May.
Shipboard Romance (IRE) 3-1jt-fav (8-6) Tracked leaders, ridden halfway, slightly outpaced 2f out, kept on to take 3rd close home, 3rd of 8, 4 1/2l behind Drumalee Lass (8-6) at Leicester 5f 2yo sll (6) sft.
Woodcote Wildcat (USA) 50-1 (8-12) Started slowly, outpaced towards rear, never a factor, 13th of 15, 16l behind Imperial Mint (9-3) at Windsor 5f 2yo mdn auc (4) gf.