• HELP US - Become a Patron - Fat Jockey is a horse racing community focused on all the big races in the UK and Ireland. We don't charge users but if you have found the site useful then any support towards the running costs is appreciated ... a small donation each month would be a huge contribution. Become a Patron!

Ballymore Novice Hurdle 2020

His price will likely be (ought to be) bigger, assuming he don't run this weekend.
Will depend a little as to who else runs well in the 2 novice hurdles though I suppose.
But a conformation of target would obviously shorten him up.
 
I can see him going odds on and then back to evens on the day.

I’d disagree with that as I’m sure the Irish will plow in on the day and he’ll be seen as the Irish festival banker.
 
Just the one run at 2m 4f for me turns me off envoi
 
I’d disagree with that as I’m sure the Irish will plow in on the day and he’ll be seen as the Irish festival banker.

You are probably right. Samcro went off 8/11 so maybe similar. It may also depend on how the bookies get on day 1. They love people piling into shorties though
 
At the other end of the Spectrum , Trainer Noel Kelly confirmed today.
Decor Irlandais going for this race , " to try and pick up place money ".
happy days for my 66-1 ticket !.:)
 
Another horse for whom Fry held high hopes on Festival Trials day was King Roland.

A dual victor in the bumper sphere and a runaway winner over hurdles at Exeter on New Year’s Day, the six-year-old was a hot favourite stepping up to Grade Two level for the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle – but he had to make do with the runner-up spot behind Harry Senior.

While King Roland was far from disgraced, Fry admits the defeat has thrown his Festival participation into doubt too.

He added: “Turning in, you thought he was going to go and win by five or even 10 lengths – but for whatever reason he hasn’t quite gone through with it.

“Our aspirations are not the same as they were going into Saturday, that’s for sure. No disrespect to the horses he was up against, but they weren’t the very best of the British novices – and both the winner and the second were getting weight from the third and fourth.

“The Irish look to have a very strong hand in the novice-hurdling division this year – and if we couldn’t beat the horses on Saturday, he’s not going to beat a horse like Envoi Allen at the Festival.

“He still ran a good race, and plenty of good horses have been beaten in that race and gone on to bigger and better things – namely Rock On Ruby, who was beaten by Bobs Worth before going on to win a Champion Hurdle.

“We’ll just take stock of the situation and then make a plan. We don’t want to go to Cheltenham to make up the numbers, and maybe that’s what Saturday told us we’d be doing.”
 
I know hes being realistic, but what a pussy
 
I know hes being realistic, but what a pussy

I thought the same.
Trainers are supposed to try and improve horses and work out ways to get extra out of them, not pack it in after one disappointing performance.
 
Yeh, i get it you wanna maximise the opportunity of the horse, but lets say you get him to his peak one day, but there is still another horse in your division that is better, are you still going to avoid..have a bit of ambition
 
I thought the same.
Trainers are supposed to try and improve horses and work out ways to get extra out of them, not pack it in after one disappointing performance.

If I owned him he’d be moving yards in the morning.
 
If I owned him he’d be moving yards in the morning.

Same, those comments are like a petulant child throwing their toys out of the pram.

It was a run full of promise and he didn’t give up but fought back and was closing at the line. He needs stepping up to the AB and holding onto as long as possible and hope he’s got that gear change he showed turning in
 
Totally agree, thought it was a decent run first time at the distance.

Obviously holds him in high regard but was hardly that disappointing to pack up tools and not go to Cheltenham. Think if Sean has noticed Harry Senior being ridden he maybe would have got stuck into KR sooner as he swung in so easily to the front but didn’t seem to do much from there. Stayed on again as has been said.

Would definitely have a chance in either the ballymore or AB of running a cracking race imo.
 
Don’t really want to jump on the HF criticism but ffs

So negative, I’d be with Jackie Moon .

The experience to be gained running at the Festival surely is nothing but a positive and you don’t know unless you try ?

Are we all wrong and should he be praised for his honesty?
 
Think what he said was fine. King Roland had a big reputation and ultimately dissapointed. Fry has to manage connections expectations and he's rightly concluded based on that performance that he wouldn't be competitive in a Ballymore, which is fair enough IMO. He probably could have phrased it better and perhaps been a little less dismissive of Cheltenham, but he's given an honest view of the horses ability which I vastly prefer to the generic blaming of ground, tactics etc.
 
Think what he said was fine. King Roland had a big reputation and ultimately dissapointed. Fry has to manage connections expectations and he's rightly concluded based on that performance that he wouldn't be competitive in a Ballymore, which is fair enough IMO. He probably could have phrased it better and perhaps been a little less dismissive of Cheltenham, but he's given an honest view of the horses ability which I vastly prefer to the generic blaming of ground, tactics etc.

Definitely better than the other excuses they trot out:encouragement:
 
Another horse for whom Fry held high hopes on Festival Trials day was King Roland.

A dual victor in the bumper sphere and a runaway winner over hurdles at Exeter on New Year’s Day, the six-year-old was a hot favourite stepping up to Grade Two level for the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle – but he had to make do with the runner-up spot behind Harry Senior.

While King Roland was far from disgraced, Fry admits the defeat has thrown his Festival participation into doubt too.

He added: “Turning in, you thought he was going to go and win by five or even 10 lengths – but for whatever reason he hasn’t quite gone through with it.

“Our aspirations are not the same as they were going into Saturday, that’s for sure. No disrespect to the horses he was up against, but they weren’t the very best of the British novices – and both the winner and the second were getting weight from the third and fourth.

“The Irish look to have a very strong hand in the novice-hurdling division this year – and if we couldn’t beat the horses on Saturday, he’s not going to beat a horse like Envoi Allen at the Festival.

“He still ran a good race, and plenty of good horses have been beaten in that race and gone on to bigger and better things – namely Rock On Ruby, who was beaten by Bobs Worth before going on to win a Champion Hurdle.

“We’ll just take stock of the situation and then make a plan. We don’t want to go to Cheltenham to make up the numbers, and maybe that’s what Saturday told us we’d be doing.”

Normally you'd hear a trainer make excuses for the run....in partucular Hendo.

Not sure i quite get the outcry on here about it? Toys out of pram? Remove horses from yard?

What? He's obviously disappointed, he probably thought the horse was about to catapult himself into a main challenger for the Ballymore...instead he didn't + he's been honest.

He's said he ran a good race etc. He's just being realistic.

Christ if some of the folk in here owned horses they'd be in a different yard every month by the sounds of it...worse than giggy and Phil Martin :devilish:
 
Last edited:
Normally you'd hear a trainer make excuses for the run....in partucular Hendo.

Not sure i quite get the outcry on here about it? Toys out of pram? Remove horses from yard?

What? He's obviously disappointed, he probably thought the horse was about to catapult himself into a main challenger for the Ballymore...instead he didn't + he's been honest.

He's said he ran a good race etc. He's just being realistic.

Christ if some of the folk in here owned horses they'd be in a different yard every month but the sounds of it...worse that giggy and Phil Martin :devilish:

Good post Jack, agree with all of that
 
Normally you'd hear a trainer make excuses for the run....in partucular Hendo.

Not sure i quite get the outcry on here about it? Toys out of pram? Remove horses from yard?

What? He's obviously disappointed, he probably thought the horse was about to catapult himself into a main challenger for the Ballymore...instead he didn't + he's been honest.

He's said he ran a good race etc. He's just being realistic.

Christ if some of the folk in here owned horses they'd be in a different yard every month by the sounds of it...worse than giggy and Phil Martin :devilish:


Yip , good response fella