Best bets for the horseracing Wednesday 20th September 2023

I simply can’t help but take note when I see Charlie Appleby enter a few at a midweek meeting and he had five booked for Yarmouth on Wednesday and perhaps most interestingly William Buick down to ride four of them rather than the two he also had entered over at Sandown. The yard has a strike-rate of 22% at the seaside track and just about everyone they send there goes well. I am all about the Moulton Paddocks team on Wednesday. 

Best bets for the horseracing at Yarmouth

First of the Moulton Paddocks battalion is Romantic Style in the 6f British EBF Fillies' Novice Stakes at 2.40. Only seventh on her debut at Newbury over six she was slowly away and green as grass at times but kept on nicely late on not knocked about and no doubt went into a notebook or two as one for the future. She has an entry at York over the weekend in a Novice with a far bigger purse so this looks to me as if the stable are trying to get that first win under her belt as a confidence booster. I am on at 3-1 overnight.

Two from Moulton Paddocks run in the 7f EBF Future Stayers Maiden Stakes and it is surely significant that Buick is on debutant Edge Of Blue rather than Honest Desire who he rode at Goodwood earlier this month when fifth. A son of top sprinter Blue Point he is out of the unraced Galileo mare Davantage so a half-brother to four winners, two of whom were winners at two. A €200,000 yearling purchase the snips have been reached for already so it’s all about winning races for this one now. He is also entered at Kempton on Friday in what looks an easier race so stable confidence must be fairly high to send him here for debut. I think he’ll get backed so I am on at 5-2 overnight.

Sapphire Seas is one I have tipped before and she looks to build on her recent very good form in the Listed 1m2f EBF Stallions John Musker Fillies' Stakes. Fourth on debut she has three 1’s next to her name since then having completed a hat-trick when winning a Handicap at Haydock earlier this month off a mark of 94 looking very much ready for a step-up in class. She has a bit to find with Al Asifah on paper, who is the obvious danger, but that one ran poorly in the G.2 Ribblesdale at Ascot and just might not be as good as a lot of people thought. We’ll find out here. I am on the Godolphin filly at 100-30. 

First Sight is the last of the four with the chestnut colt lining-up in the 1m1f Moulton Nurseries Handicap at 4.20. He racked up a couple of quick victories at the start of the year on the All-weather but was then not seen again until June when a disappointing favourite over 1m2f at HQ, Buick reporting that the colt “stopped quickly”. A mark of 90 may prove lenient as he looked like a colt with a future at the start of the year; the yard was under a bit of a cloud at the time of his HQ effort (for them at least) so it is easy to ignore that run. It’s an open affair on paper and I have happily taken 7-1 about this one as I really think he is better than his current mark and might be the Group horse in a handicap.

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