SIMON NOTT BETTING BLOG: Aintree Friday

Before I start on today’s blog, I was chatting to a few bookmakers before racing who were a bit concerned. They are worried that punters and the wider betting world might get the wrong idea reading my betting ring reports, writes SIMON NOTT.

While Star Sports and several other firms will and do take the size of bets that make the blog, those bets are the exception rather than the rule. The majority of on course business is of more manageable proportions, that business is very encouraged and most welcome. Please get involved with all the fun, tradition and colour of the betting ring and punt with your racecourse bookmakers, come on down.

Today was Ladies Day, the ladies were out in force in their finery as you’d expect at Aintree. They didn’t have to brave the cold or the wet as betting on the opening race either, the weather was behaving itself being both balmy and dry. The team today remained unchanged with Hannah and Nick front of house and Lofty chirping away behind the pitch, though he did have his pink tie on in honour of the ladies.

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1:45 – Huyton Asphalt Franny Blennerhassett Memorial Mildmay Novices’ Chase (Grade 1) 3m1f

Inothewayurthinkin had been a 2/1 chance this morning but opened 13/8 on course. Star Sports laid £3000 at 13/8 and a further £7000 at 11/8, the punters evidently not concerned that they’d missed the bottle, they certainly hadn’t lost theirs. The rest of the business was pretty poor, those bets aside the firm took just £1300 from the floor, at the off the favourite was losing just shy of £14,000.

The office got in touch as they were running telling me, ‘A fairly low key intro to day two Inothewayurthinkin our bogie including bets of £4000 and 13/8 and 11/8, but not to the level we expected.’

It’s getting a bit monotonous now isn’t it. How is it that there are any bookmakers at all? Another well-backed favourite won and the layers on course start the day in the red. This time the ring got the real rub-down, I doubt very many people that backed Inothewayurthinkin would have wanted to be on at any stage until the home turn. Just after Lofty declared ‘the bogie’s beat’ to be exactly accurate. With that, JP’s jolly slipped through the gears, jumped the last better than a stag and bounced home unchallenged. What price was it in running I wonder?!

To lighten the mood. Our Hannah was up early and visited the BHA team behind the pre race checks on the purpose build trot up strip this morning. Here are some photos from that trip.

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2:20 – William Hill Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap) 2m4f

Next up was a 11/2 the field handicap, bets weren’t expected to be huge but there was £1625 at 11/2 on Champagne Twist in a book that held £3000, not big, nor clever, but the firm are there to take bets.

Kateira won the race and returned 5/1 co-favourite, but this time it was a winner in the Star book and copped £2000 back. At least the rot had stopped, but sadly not the run of fancied horses winning. The office didn’t have much to report but the little news they did have was bad, telling me, ‘There were lots of smaller sized bets in this one but another fancied winner resulted in a small loss.’ That came back shortly after with other news ‘£50,000 double Mystical Power 11/10 Jonbon 5/4.’

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2:55 – TrustATrader Top Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1) 2m½f

The first bet in the third race on course wasn’t Mystical Power but a £9000 – £4000 Firefox. Pretty much the next bets in the book were £5000 – £4000, then £6000 – £5000 the favourite, so up the front two it was then. In the meantime, one of Star’s betting shops reported three double bets totalling £17,000 all featuring Mystical Power, one of them had a leg already landed with Kateira. Other bets reported from the shop estate were a deuce of doubles, £2000 and £3000 with the first leg the last winner. They’d also laid £10,000 Jonbon at 5/4 and £10,000 The Jukebox Man at 2/1. It was getting livelier.

As they set off the office came through, their message was ‘Between a rock and a hard place Firefox big bogie including £35,000 at 9/4 while Mystical Power is a decent winner in the book, but a loser in retail and in many multis.’

I think Lofty was hoping his mystical aura might work in reverse when he called Mystical Power the winner two out. Sadly, he needs to work on it, it doesn’t stop the jollies winning only losing. A huge roar went up as the favourite passed the post in front of the second favourite with the rest of the field out with the washing. There was even jumping around and dancing from punters delirious with joy down by the Tattersalls bookies which I’m sure they enjoyed immensely, this was getting desperate now, the 11/10 favourite another blow for the bookmakers not to mention some of Star Sports’ betting shops.

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3:30 – My Pension Expert Melling Chase (Grade 1) 2m4f

Next up and another hotpot, Jonbon which attract an even £6000 early in the betting. That was it, the rest of the field money was £2500 in total, the firm just wanted Jonbon beaten, they can’t all win. The office were in the same need, telling me ‘One horse book, just laid £70,000 at 5/4. To sum up both singles and multis – simply we need Jonbon beat’.

Jonbon won, Ben called and told me what I already knew, it was relentless, on course, in the office and the betting shops, the firm were getting slaughtered.

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4:05 – Randox Supports Race Against Dementia Topham Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap) 2m5f

Anyway, enough negativity, there were bets to be taken. The bookmaker next door to Star asked Lofty what price Bill Baxter was, Lofty replied 15/2, the bookie was after 8/1, Lofty told him he had it, the bookie called in £5000 – £600, then after a short pause added, ‘each-way’. That’s the way, the old one two. The other decent bets in the race were £300 on Shakem Up’Arry at 5/1 and a grand at 9/2 the same horse.

At last! The betting ring had a reprieve, Arizona Cardinal getting up in the final strides to win at 20/1 copped £4000 in Star’s book. Of course it was the sort of race where you can hope for a result but psychologically it was a huge win for the beleaguered bookmakers.

The office echoed the sentiments in their message which said ‘Plenty of bets and a decent winner on a lower staking event, but we welcome the respite’

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4:40 – Cavani Sartorial Menswear Sefton Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1) 3m½f

They messaged again shortly after to say they’d laid a bet of £110,000 – £20,000 Croke Park in the penultimate, which I imagine got the ball rolling for them. Funnily enough, Lofty laid £300 each-way the same horse at 5/1 around the same time. Not long after the team struck a bet of £20,000 – £6000 Shanagh Bob so if the worm had turned, there were chances of some sort of recovery, you have to take it to win it. The field money on top of the big bets totalled just £2500 which on a day as busy as today isn’t very good at all, especially given the pitch.

Dancing City winning at 4/1 was a cracking result and copped £6000 in the book, the firm was only losing £13,000 on the day. ‘It feels like winning’ beamed Lofty. The office came in with ‘Good result getting Croke Park and The Jukebox Man beat – is the comeback on?’

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5:15 – Alder Hey Handicap Hurdle (Conditional Jockeys’ And Amateur Riders’ Race) (GBB Race) (Class 2) 2m½f

As with yesterday the lucky last was unlikely to get the on-course team out of trouble on the day, but the blow could be eased further with another favourable result. Further afield in the firm there were some nasty doubles sitting in some betting shops running onto Go Dante and Maidenstreetprince in this heat. There was good news from behind the pitch, Lofty piped up saying ‘This is the best betting race of the day by far’ adding that he meant by the weight of public money.

The book was looking quite traditional and tidy until a punter had £30,000 – £5000 Densworth as they were going down, which meant just the one loser, the lucky last would either knock another chunk off the day’s losses or possibly sink the meeting in one hit.

El Jefe won the race! They got one, a proper old fashioned 40/1 turn up for the book, a result for the betting ring, at last the book copped pretty much what it took, a virtual skinner for £7500. They don’t all win after all. The firm still lost just over £6000 on the day, but as Lofty said earlier, it feels like winning. The office came back with a similar story of ‘We end the day with a winner, but it was still a costly afternoon.’

Steve replaces Hannah for tomorrow, we’re back for the big one, and the feeling is, all is not lost, just yet.

Friday’s results from the Racing Post:

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Views of authors do not necessarily represent views of Star Sports Bookmakers.

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Simon Nott is author of: Skint Mob! Tales from the Betting Ring
available on Kindle CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS

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