Matsunyane’s season to get even better with good mounts at Turffontein

Kabelo Matsunyane — in sixth place in the national jockeys log — has some plum mounts at the meeting at Turffontein on Thursday. He could ride a treble on the nine-race card.

Matsunyane is enjoying his best season to date — he has already booted home 72 winners and bettered his 2021/2022 total of 53 successes.

Many of his wins this term have been for trainer Brett Crawford whose son, James, is looking after a stable at Randjesfontein training centre. Matsunyane has five booked rides for the yard and four have winning chances.

In the first race at the city track, trainer Mike de Kock has booked Matsunyane for his three-year-old filly, Sharapova, who failed to justify favouritism in a race at Kenilworth in January. Back on the highveld, the daughter of Querari will be at short odds to leave the maiden ranks.

About 30 minutes later, Matsunyane will partner another De Kock inmate, Arividicio, who also disappointed on his latest outing. The gelding finished out of the money in the Egoli Mile won by Laguna Verde.

It’s perhaps no surprise De Kock has turned to Matsunyane to partner this R325,000 son of Flower Alley as he was in the saddle when the three-year-old won his maiden race last September.

The first of Matsunyane’s rides for the Crawford team is the well-bred filly Island Beauty who runs in the third race. Given her pedigree — by Soft Falling Rain out of the outstanding mare Ilha Bela — it’s a surprise the grey has failed to win in seven starts.

The opposition includes Impersonation, bred by Gary Player and the mount of Keagan De Melo, and Sean Tarry’s filly, Efficient Trader.

Unconditional Love — a two-time winner for the Crawford yard — has a favourable draw in the fourth race but faces no easy task against some in-form opponents, which include Queen Of Smoke, Cape Lights, Tulip Tree and Crimson Princess.

Queen of Smoke — a daughter of Gimmethegreenlight who races in the colours of the Hollywood Syndicate — is trained by Stuart Pettigrew and ran a creditable fifth in the Three Troikas at Turffontein in January. The filly should appreciate the step-up to 1,600m.

The horse that has frustrated both James Crawford and Musunyane the most this term, has to be the Silvano gelding Tirpitz. He has been selected to win in this column on a number of occasions but has had to settle for minor placings.

Perhaps the four-year-old — also owned by the Hollywood Syndicate — will get it right at last in the final leg of the jackpot. While the gelding doesn’t have a good draw, he is a year older than Melech and set to receive 4.5kg from Roy Magner’s two-time winner.

Magner also saddles Kotinos and with Donald Geerthsen claiming his 2.5kg allowance the son of Var could pose a threat to Tirpitz and Melech.

Ashley Fortune was a busy lady at last Sunday’s Cape Yearling Sale buying nine lots and she is represented by three-time winner Bard Of Avon. However, the four-year-old is set to carry 62kg and give 8.5kg to Tirpitz, which looks like a tough task.

Robert Burns will be one of the leading fancies in the seventh race and — after a narrow defeat last time out — is another runner who could make it a memorable meeting for Matsunyane.

SELECTIONS

1st Race: (9) Sharapova (1) Mo The Man (2) Gimme A Diamond (5) Free Movement

2nd Race: (1) Arrividicio (5) Raffles (6) Climate Control (4) Fast Love

3rd Race: (6) Island Beauty (2) Impersonation (4) Efficient Trader (1) Lady Zultanite

4th Race: (7) Queen Of Smoke (8) Tulip Tree (9) Cape Lights (5) Unconditional Love

5th Race: (1) Indus Knight (3) Little Prince (7) Paschals Samore (5) Napoleon

6th Race: (4) Light Of Day (1) Golden Prospect (3) Roll Over Redrover (6) Futurewolff

7th Race: (7) Robert Burns (3) Irontail (4) Sage King (6) Coming In Hot

8th Race: (8) Tirpitz (5) Melech (2) Bard Of Avon (7) Kotinos

9th Race: (4) South Boy (3) There She Goes (1) Stormy Seas (7) Laetitia’s Angel