SIMON NOTT BETTING BLOG: Newbury Friday

Lofty had studied the form for today, gradients were expected from the big fella who’s not short on opinions. The sun was out as were the crowds some even sporting shorts, well one chap was, fair play to him, writes SIMON NOTT.

The bookies, still flush from Cheltenham were in good spirits and all was well in the world, where better to be than Newbury on a Friday. Back to Lofty, he was manning the Tatts pitch on his tod and was a cheerful as he gets, even accommodating pound each-way old folks with a smile.

They’re coming out in their droves’ boomed Lofty as the horses went to post, double checking when a chap asked for a tenner on, adding a ‘You won’t beat the price, not even with a yellow sticker at Tesco’s’ with a jaunty ad-lib pinching the line from the late Ian Metcalfe.

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2:00 – BetVictor Novices’ Hurdle (GBB Race) (Class 3) (4YO plus) 2m4½f

Came From Nowhere was hawking at a bottle on Lofty’s board, a redundant bag man and Andrew Lowrie of Optimum Racing marched to the joint with intent but were just saying hello, not betting. Lofty kept tapping away and took 32 bets, which amounted to £400, he was happy with that considering that it was the opener. At the off Grand Garçon, Lofty’s namesake was the boogie losing £260 and Came From Nowhere bad for £220. Things looked good for the jolly until he made a rick at the last, allowing the 2/1 second-in Le Frimeur to take advantage up the run-in to win, the book copped £117.

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2:30 – Focus Ltd Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (For The Brown Chamberlin Trophy) (GBB Race) (Class 3) (5YO plus) 2m6½f

Between races, Alice Barnes produced a tin and offered me and others a ‘mini egg’ cookie backed by her good self last night. When I went back to the joint relating how tasty it was, Lofty, so far yet to try one started salivating like a St Bernard so was soon furnished with a cookie to satisfy his hunger. Meanwhile, the betting on the next heat was getting lively, they bet 5/2 the field in a five horse race with He Knows Better heading the market. However, it was Captain Bellamy who attracted the first bet of note £450 at 11/4. When the punter approached with a fist full of notes I thought he was going to peel off a score to have on, a favourite with some punters, but no he had the whole lot on. Pretty soon after that, they were off with the Captain losing £1300 from a £1026 book. It was all academic after 9/2 chance El Capitaine won the race in some style from the bogie, the book copped £964.50, Lofty not rounding up today.

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3:00 – BetVictor Handicap Hurdle (Class 3) (4YO plus 0-130) 2m½f

No sooner had Lofty put the prices up for the third, still basking in not only sun but the glory of the previous race’s cop, his mettle was tested when a well-respected bookmaker toddled over from the rails and casually asked for a £10,000 – £1300 Cornish Storm. He was laid, then Lofty looked at the impossibly lopsided book and quoted the late John Hales, proclaiming ‘This one is standing out like a fighting dog’s cock’, they had a way with words, those old bookies, he was right of course, not that I’ve witnessed an aroused fighting dog.

Sooner after a bookie had £900 – £200 Across Earth trade followed by a flurry of £100 bets on the easy to back 10/11 to 11/10 Helnwein, though shrewdie money was included in that. At the off, Cornish Storm was losing £9376 and Across Earth was losing £111. Cornish Storm was pulling too hard, according to Lofty. Lofty was right, despite showing up early the bogie was beaten before the business end of the race, then it looked like Helnwein was going to win, then Across Earth but ‘one for the good guys’ came up the rail, Spirou mugged them both close home, to win at 20/1, from Helnwein which returned 5/6 the book copped £1848 after a successful bet of £320 – £20 the winner, worse than SP for a change.

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3:32 – Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Handicap Hurdle (Challenger Stayers Hurdle Series Qualifier) (Class 3) (4YO plus 0-140) 3m½f

One thing that was popular today were forecast bets, Lofty laid loads of them to people off the floor, looking for a decent win for a small outlay. The biggest bet of the day so far wasn’t a forecast but £4000 – £5000 on Peacenik from a punter known to the firm. Meanwhile, some of the bookmakers were a little concerned about an member of staff who looked like he might be suffering an early season sunburn on his short cropped bonce, he declined to be named but admitted the plan was for his head to resemble a Malteser, so far so good but he’ll have to be careful he doesn’t end up in one of Alice’s cookies. After the initial excitement of the five grand lump, things got a bit quiet. Lofty did his best to call the punters in with jokes about Botox etc but to no avail, at the off the book held £5249, which tells a story. Just after they started running, a punter had a grand on Desert Belle at 13/8 on the aways over at Lingfield.

Once again, the Gambling Gods smiled on the good guys, as 9/1 chance Lihyan won the race and the book copped £5335, ‘A chicken dinner’ replied Lofty cryptically, until he added that it wasn’t a paltry amount. Boom Boom, Andrew Lowrie overheard it and commented it was a foul joke, I think they should both get their coats. Lofty was even more buoyant when Desert Belle was beaten at Lingfield too, I feared I might start preferring the grumpy version, though the fun filled novelty hadn’t quite worn off yet.

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4:07 – BetVictor Handicap Chase (GBB Race) (Class 4) (5YO plus 0-120) 2m6½f

Lofty and I had a nice surprise when Optimum Racing’s Andrew Lowrie brought over ice creams for Lofty and I which was very kind of him. Poor old Andrew’s generosity was spotted by John and Lee on the DragonBet firm so he was off back to the ice-cream van for the double bump. This next heat boasted the biggest field of the day with Wheresmemoney the ‘bottle’ 2/1 favourite but the punters just weren’t interested with just £376 in the hod at the off, but at least Lofty had time to enjoy his ice-cream. King Califet the 4/1 second-in won the book lost £119, if you backed the winner off course you lost half a point, the winner returned 7/2 industry SP.

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4:42 – Daily Bet Boost With BetVictor Handicap Hurdle (Class 4) (4YO plus 0-115) 3m½f

The penultimate started as what can only be described as a gentle affair, in other words, nobody was having a bet. In that time, I had the chance to notice that loads of chaps were wearing shorts, not just the one intrepid fella, I wasn’t uncomfortable in my Crombie; it’s that transition period isn’t it?

That bit of filler done, betting did pick up to the extent that Lofty took almost a monkey on the race as the horses got to post with two losers, Name Me Nicely and Either Or for £700 a piece. Jumping the last, it looked as if Name Me Nicely, tipped by previous #BettingPeople interviewee Roger Bush to his clients, would win but was collared after the last by Kosasiempre which won at 12/1 a skinner for the book.

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5:16 – Highclere Horse Feeds Oataalin Open Hunters’ Chase (Class 5) (6YO plus) 2m7½f

The hunter chase finale saw a trade bet of £2500 – £450 each-way Jeffery’s Cross kick things off, that’s 11/2 with the fractions, the trade know the fractions! There appeared to be very little else of interest to the punters, what punters, they had vanished. Lofty was still full of beans, ‘5/1 Jeffery’s Cross’ he shouted, before adding ‘He might bungle the last though he’ll be zippy early on’, our man must have swallowed a wit pill this morning. Boom Boom.

His humour didn’t exactly fall on deaf ears, no ears would be more accurate. At the off the book held £1023 with Jeffery’s Cross losing £2474. Jeffery was zippy, didn’t bungle the last and connections certainly weren’t cross because he won the race, at 6/1, Lofty laid the right price but still did £2800, scooping the cream from what was still a very good winning day, with £6700 won from Friday that wasn’t anticipated as being as lively. We’re back tomorrow, where Keiran and Kaan join the gang.

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

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