Watching Brief...

THE five-furlong race for twoyear-olds at Naas was open to winners last Monday but attracted mainly debutants, in addition to hot favourite Dali.

Dali, by the late Scat Daddy (sire of the stable’s Caravaggio), had run an extremely good race on his debut at Dundalk, a contest won by another promising sort. Dali was introduced into the Coventry Stakes betting after scoring at Naas, when know-how was key. Sharp from the gates, he basically had the race won early.

He was made to work for his victory by a colt that only had a length to find at the wire, yet was making his debut. Hawaam was representing an axis that goes back many years – owner Hamdan Al-Maktoum and trainer Kevin Prendergast – but he is a colt that was hard to weigh up, as his stallion Swiss Spirit (by Invincible Spirit) is a rookie.

Swiss Spirit’s first two-yearolds are making the track now and this one looks potentially smart. Prendergast won the Coventry with Verglas 21 years ago and he may have a lively contender in 2017 too.