Williams set for a pay-day

Apr 19 2008 The Journal

NOT everybody gets what they deserve in life. Racehorses are the same. Take Mon Mome, for example. He has done enough on the racetrack to merit winning a substantial prize, but so far it hasn’t happened.

However, his big pay day could arrive at Ayr today when he contests the Coral Scottish Grand National. At eight, he has time on his side and, despite carrying more weight than he is entitled to on official ratings, he makes plenty of appeal. He is not very big, so it makes sense to run him with less weight on his back against better opposition.

He was progressive in his first season over fences during 2005-2006 with a string of consistent efforts which brought him four victories, and only twice did he blot his copybook, including when unseating his rider in this race two years ago.

Last winter, he lost nothing in defeat when second to Halcon Genelardais in the 2006 Coral Welsh National and, even though he is 6lb out of the handicap here, he meets his Chepstow conqueror on 15lb better terms for four lengths. It showed Mon Mome was still on an upward curve, confirmed next time when he found only Ladalko too good in the Totesport.com Classic Chase at Warwick. This season he has been restricted to only four appearances after a setback following his fourth in the William Hill Trophy at Cheltenham in which he again ran respectably in the latest renewal after a far from ideal preparation.

We last saw him a fortnight ago at Aintree where he never got on terms with the principals after being hampered at Becher’s second time, but did complete the course in his own time to finish 10th of the 15 survivors.

Normally, I wouldn’t be tempted to go for a horse in the Ayr marathon so soon after the Grand National but, in Mon Mome’s case, he still goes there a relatively fresh horse.

His trainer Venetia Williams also saddles Flintoff who could bowl them all over if it happens to be one his going days. Running Miko De Beauchene to a length in the Red Square Vodka Gold Cup at Haydock was a massive improvement on what he had previously shown this season, but he will still have his work cut out avenging that defeat on worse terms.

Consistency is not his strong point as he was subsequently pulled up in the Midlands National and was never seriously in the hunt when sixth in the Irish version nine days later.

Alan King put the cat amongst the pigeons by declaring top weight Halcon Genelardais. It frightened off many entries at the five-day stage and, as a result, he is only one of three from 24 final acceptors that race off their correct mark.

Beaten only a head by Miko De Beauchene in the Coral Welsh National in December, Halcon Genelardais is no certainty to turn the tables on 5lb better terms, but his presence means that stable companion Old Benny is only a couple of pounds wrong at the weights and could be a better bet to follow up his Cheltenham success.

Ferdy Murphy has lifted the prize twice in the last three years and was responsible for the first two home 12 months ago. His Noir Et Vert could be suited by the demands of this stamina test and ran really well on his belated reappearance at Cheltenham. With a competent claimer in the saddle to offset some of the extra weight he is forced to carry, he is preferred to Murphy’s other hope. Leading Man, but neither may succeed.

No Scottish-trained horse has won this prize since Cockle Strand in 1982, but Len Lungo is looking to put the record straight with Wild Cane Ridge, but much will depend on his jumping.

One I do like is the bold-jumping Ossmoses. He had a nice prep-run at Newbury before that and is suggested as a saver.