Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
IT’S TIME TO EXCEL
Filly has ability to put Willie in high Spirit in Cork
IF handling the fast ground, Excelling Spirit should make it third-time-lucky in the Cork Music Night July 13th Fillies Maiden in Cork tomorrow.
A seven-race card at the Mallow venue features the Group 3 Munster Oaks and the valuable Cork Derby.
But the Willie Mccreery-trained Excelling Spirit looks the banker bet on the card.
This daughter of Invincible Spirit made her belated debut in a soft ground maiden, over six furlongs, at the Curragh last month and ran a cracker, finishing well to finish second to Arcanears.
She went into my notebook as a certain future winner but, in her only subsequent start, she bumped into Elegant Drama at Fairyhouse.
Sent off favourite and encountering good to firm ground, she looked set to master her front-running rival up the straight, but didn’t manage to get by her and was beaten a half-length.
A reproduction of that effort, on similarly quick ground, should suffice tomorrow, unless there’s an improver, or a smart newcomer, in the field.
My only concern is that, a big filly, Excelling Spirit might appreciate the arrival of some rain.
Another Mccreery-trained filly, the progressive Bloomfield has shown a definite liking for soft ground this season, winning listed events on this course and Gowran Park.
And she probably sets the standard in tomorrow’s Munster Oaks over the course and distance of her Noblesse Stakes success. She has beaten Glamorous Approach in her two outings this year.
But Bloomfield might struggle to concede 14lb. to some smart threeyear-olds tomorrow, notably Dermot Weld’s Jaega and Flattering, one of three Ballydoyle representatives. Flattering, runaway winner of her maiden on this track, was beaten 11 and a half lengths when fifth to stable-companion Forever Together in the Investec Oaks at Epsom last time and deserves plenty of respect.
But I’ll take a chance on Jaega, convincing winner on her debut at Leopardstown (heavy ground) before chasing home Bye Bye Baby in the Blue Wind at the Curragh form boosted when the winner finished third in the Investec Oaks, when she was three and a half lengths ahead of Flattering.
The Cork Derby looks wide open and I’ll side with the versatile Harry Rogers (inset) trained Lord Erskine, 7lb. higher than when winning the Irish Cesarewitch last October and coming into this event on the back of easy handicap hurdle wins at Sligo and Tipperary.