TWO horses that have been called plenty of rude names could be leading the charge for the feature at Perth tonight.
Briar's Delight and Pariah, both far from the easiest of rides, are among the 10 declared for the #6000 Famous Grouse Handicap Chase.
Dick Allan has enjoyed considerable success with Briar's Delight at Kelso but the 10-year-old needs to time his run to perfection. ''He wears blinkers to sharpen him up, not because he's ungenuine,'' the Cornhill-on-Tweed trainer said. ''He was in front too soon once or twice or he might have won a lot more races this season.''
As Pariah's form figures would suggest, he is very much ''a nearly type'' and some of the top jockeys have failed to persuade him to put his best foot forward. Brian Harding partnered him into second place at Kelso a fortnight ago while even Paul Carberry has failed to convince Martin Todhunter's enigmatic performer. Eddie Callaghan has the task today.
If Briar's Delight or Pariah showed a fraction of their ability it should be good enough to win tonight.
Latchford will be a popular order to complete his hat trick in the final race. Trained in Worcestershire by Ian Williams, the six-year-old has won his last two races in style and his latest success was a nine-length win under champion jockey Tony McCoy at Fontwell.
Dawn Goodfellow, who has been dispersing her string at the Doncaster Sales this week, will be hoping for a big run from Stan's Your Man in the novice chase. The Earlston permit-holder retires at the end of the season and is moving to the Algarve.
Stan's Your Man is one of her horses being sent to another trainer, but relatives to him and other stable stalwarts, like Ceilidh Boy and Jesters Prospect, were all attracting plenty of interest to match their hefty reserves.
qPeter Savill yesterday pledged strong leadership and the improvement of racing's finances after being unanimously elected for a four-year term as the new chairman of the British Horseracing Board.
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