Okovango being tacked up
WE have three runners at Kelso today and are hoping each of them will be very competitive.
OKOVANGO DELTA (1.05) looks to have a very good chance in the opener. He went off the boil last season after a superb hurdling debut here and if he runs as well as he did that day he will have a big shout. He is on a very fair mark and while he had a couple of niggles last season he’s done well over the summer. He ran well in his bumpers then had a very good hurdling start behind a nice horse of Nicky Richards’ Nells Son, so a return to that form would put him bang there this afternoon.
GET WITH IT (2.15) is our shortest-priced one after a good summer which saw him win at Perth and run consistently. Kelso is a different test altogether, the other way round for starters, so he’ll have to cope with that. He is in good form at home, it’s a competitive race as you would expect, but he’s been in great order over the summer and if he holds his form going left-handed he’ll hopefully be bang there.
In the final race COSMIC OUTLAW (5.10) lines up under Dylan Johnston in the conditionals’ race. It’s a first run of the season for him, he’s on what we think is a good mark and Dylan’s ten pounds will also help on that score. We are stepping him up to three-miles-two, which is a stiff ask on his comeback but we think he’s fit enough and on good ground are hopeful he'll get it.
It would be especially poignant if Cosmic Outlaw could run well today following the sad deaths of Sandy Jeffrey and Johnny Jeffreys recently. They were important members of the Friday Lions syndicate and this is their first runner since both men passed. It will be an emotional day and hopefully we can bring a bit of cheer to it as well.