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Once again, the 1260m Sable Flyers (LR), which is restricted to fillies and mares, has attracted a small field. However, there may be more to Saturday’s Borrowdale Park feature than first meets the eye.

The five-year-old Bold Silvano mare, IN THE MOOD, is the class horse in this four-horse field and has won seven races, mostly from 1600m to 1800m.

This time Kirk Swanson’s charge carries 60 kgs and initially I felt she would need further…until I remembered In The Mood won the 2018 Sable Flyers. That was also a four-horse race and she beat Elegant Beauty, who was giving away 6 kgs, by 5.50 lengths. On Saturday Norbert Takawira has the ride.

Although In The Mood carries top weight here I expect her to put up a good fight but, maybe, she might have more to do than I initially thought.

SOME SONG from Gokhan Terzi’s yard will receive 7 kgs from In The Mood and at the last race meeting she won her only start at Borrowdale over 1000m. The daughter of Oratorio (IRE), also a five-year-old, won a 1200m Maiden at the Vaal in March 2018.

My first reaction was that Some Song, with Brendon McNaughton up, was hard to assess but then it became interesting.

When Some Song won at Borrowdale, she was receiving I kg from stable mate WESTERN SHAMROCK who went down by 0.05 lengths. On Saturday there is a slight turnaround in weights.

To date Western Shamrock has only won a 1000m Maiden Plate (F) at the Vaal in February 2018, but one needs to look further. This four-year-old by Philanthropist (USA) ran third behind What A Dandy and Christofle in a 1260m MR 70 Handicap on July 27, receiving 6.5 kgs, and only three-parts of a length off the winner.

That day Cool Solution, It’s A True Story, Lady Carina and Flanders finished behind her and a repeat performance could bring Western Shamrock into the reckoning. Hennie Greyling rides.

But there’s more…

The Swanson stable also sends out DUNAS DOURADAS, a five-year-old Byword (GB) mare, and winner of 3 races from 1200m – 1800m.

Like Western Shamrock, Dunas Douradas is set to carry 52 kgs but Wes Marwing is likely to put up an extra 1.5. She is a consistent sort and certainly worthy of consideration.

There are seven races on Saturday’s card and the first is due off at 12.35 pm. The ZRP Charity Sable Flyers is scheduled for 16.15.

Photographs by Zimbabwe Equine News and Gavin MacLeod

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