Cornish Sett passes the test WINCANTON & DONCASTER WINCANTON &

0 Comments | Sunday Herald, The, Nov 9, 2008 | by Paul Wheeler

THUS far bookmakers have survived the credit crunch better than many other businesses. However, their chances of escaping Nicholls' noose seem more remote this winter.

Paul Nicholls is already looking entrenched as the champion jumps trainer and underlined that position yesterday by sending out 13 runners and coming back with seven winners.

His runners are routinely sent off as favourite by a legion of punters who trust this man with their hard-earned far more than your average City whizz-kid and yet his best winner still came from the least-backed source.

Given that Nicholls has a nearly one-in-three strike-rate with his chasers at Wincanton it may seem strange that Cornish Sett was a 12-1 shot for the Badger Ales Trophy.

Except that Cornish Sett had a less than one-in-three career strike-rate, had not won for nearly two years and Ruby Walsh had elected to ride stable companion Leading Attraction - which looked a good decision approaching the end of the back straight.

Walsh had taken his time on Leading Attraction, who was having just his fifth start under Rules. He made progress to challenge long- time leader Island Flyer by the entrance to the home straight.

Nick Scholfield had spent much of the race with nothing more than a view of horses' tails on Cornish Sett, but they had worked their way through to fifth and were still closing.

By the third-last the chances of Leading Attraction actually living up to his name had dimmed a little. Island Flyer was still pounding out the gallop and every time Paddy Brennan asked a question, the horse was still fi nding the right answer.

Cornish Sett had flunked this type of examination of late but not this time. He was almost on terms with Island Flyer at the penultimate fence and there was only inches between them over the last.

The telling inch, the one at the winning post, finally went to Cornish Sett - officially adjudged to have won by a nose - from Island Flyer with Leading Attraction third in the sort of thrilling finish that had racegoers gasping for air - which appears to have been Cornish Sett's problem.

"He was struggling with his breathing last season, " Nicholls said. "I gave him an operation before the National [in which he finish 12th] and maybe that has just helped him a bit. Ruby thought he might have picked the wrong one, but I am pleased for Nick as he has done a lot of work on him."

Walsh did not have to do too much work to pick up four winners on the card, the pick of which was Breedsbreeze in the Grade Two GBP1m totetentofollow Rising Stars Novices' Chase.

Nicholls had the favourite, Takeroc, for the Grade Two totetentofollow. co. uk Elite Hurdle but he was no match for the mare Chomba Womba, who beat him by three-and-aquarter lengths with Katchit another six lengths adrift in third. Katchit never looked like winning, although he was conceding 11lbs more than he would have to if they were to meet in a Champion Hurdle.

Some firms pushed Katchit out in the ante-post market for the Champion but Alan King, Katchit's trainer, has proved a master at playing the longgame and knows that a defeat in November will be forgotten if he is standing in the winner's enclosure at Cheltenham next March. "I'm very satisfi ed, " he said "as he faced an impossible task at the weights."

Those who had pondered the weights for the totescoop6 November Handicap at Doncaster had latched on to The Betchworth Kid but the 9- 2 favourite came up a half-length short of Tropical Strait as the sun set on the Flat turf season. David Probert also came up short on his last ride of the campaign and had to settle for a share of the apprentice jockeys' title, with William Buick, on 50 winners each after finishing second on his only ride on the card.

Probert, 19, was runnerup on Cornus in the Mollart Cox Apprentice Handicap - caught late on by Misphire - and his only other booked ride, Common Diva, was a late withdrawal from the totesport. com Nursery.

"It's a long way from the furlong pole to the winning post and I was hoping for it to come closer, but I got pipped again, " Probert said, ruing his luck after finishing second in his last three rides.

Both Probert and Buick are surely names for the future but it was a name from the past that was the most appropriate winner on this Remembrance weekend, Harry Patch, named after the sole surviving veteran from the First World War, in the totesport. com Nursery.

The gelding, who was following up a debut win at Nottingham three weeks ago, was bought by his trainer, Michael Jarvis, as a present for his wife, Gay. "We bought him a year ago and it was near Remembrance Day. We were thinking of a name for him and at a family dinner, my eldest daughter had been reading about Harry Patch.

"We went on the web, found out he was living in a home down in the West Country.

"We wrote to him for permission to name the horse and someone wrote back on his behalf saying he was delighted and he would follow his progress. We sent him a picture of the horse winning at Nottingham."

A name to remember?