Justin Snaith. Trained the Listed Jockey Club Stakes winner, Alvilda
Justin Snaith produced the smart Jallad filly Alvilda in fighting trim to win the R120 000 Listed Jockey Club Stakes at Fairview on Friday. The lion-hearted Wilgerbosdrift-bred chestnut just continues to surprise and lift her game. Snaith made it a clean sweep when he also grabbed the second cheque with the longshot Flaming Dame, in what was a good result for Cape trainers who banked three of the five stake cheques on offer.
The race produced a disappointing result for the Glen Kotzen yard, who sent out the 18-10 favourite Cash Register, who was bidding for a fourth straight win. Kotzen, who earlier had the satisfaction of watching Roaring Wind, who he also owns, win the fourth race, had to be satisfied with his lesser fancied travelling companion Platinum Cat staying on for fourth under Anthony Andrews. She beat Cash Register by 1,40 lengths and earned R6000 for running fourth.
Grant Van Niekerk cannot be blamed for Cash Register’s below-par showing as he did an outstanding job in settling her in third from her wide draw and five lengths off the pacemaking Dance To The Stars, who went off to show the way under Francois Herholdt. The outsider Light The Moon split these two in second position.
At the 1000m marker the order remained much the same and they went into the turn and into the home straight at a good clip. Dance To The Stars shortened her stride suddenly at about the 400m marker as Felix Coetzee produced Alvilda down the centre and with Cash Register angling wide but battling to gain momentum. The cavalry charge to the line was led by the Snaith filly who charged clear as Flaming Dame and Fly Emirates battled vainly to get to her. Platinum Cat was finishing best of the rest while Sammy Jo was running on steadily down the inside.
Alvilda’s forward move had been the key and she powered on to win by 2,25 lengths from her stablemate Flaming Dame in a time of 126,47. The improved Fly Emirates stayed on well to run a 2,50 length third. Platinum Cat and Sammy Jo had to go the the judge for a tight call for the fourth cheque, with the former getting the favourable decision.
The winner was bred, as already mentioned, by Wilgerbosdrift and is by the now retired Jallad out of the four-time winning Fine Edge mare, High Sea, who was trained in her successful racing career by Dennis Drier in Durban.
This was Alvilda’s fourth win from fifteen starts for four places and gross stake earnings of a not to be snuffed at R274 950. That’s not bad going for a filly who fetched just R70 000 at the now defunct Vintage Sale of the time.
Rode Alvilda. Felix Coetzee rode a cracker on the Snaith filly.
The comments of Tellytrack presenter and former jockey Gavin Venter, who knows the Snaith PE horses very well, probably best captures the winner’s big heart. Venter observed in the pre-race summing up that if anybody had suggested a year ago that Alvilda would be in contention for a Listed win, that he would have laughed and thought that they must be joking!
Which just goes to show that we may be inclined to judge our horses prematurely and write them off too early on so-called ‘expert’ advice. There are those that can prove them pleasantly wrong.
Alvilda is one such filly and has lived true to her big name. Legend has it that no female pirate in history was as much of a feminist as the Viking princess. She is said to have defied every man who crossed her path. Her father apparently locked her up in a tower and had her guarded by poisonous snakes and lizards. The man who could successfully get past the predators was the only one worthy enough to wed the princess. It is not known how many warriors died seeking the princess’ hand.
Quite a story and the legend of Alvilda looks set to continue.
