Ballsmania Cup preview: Part one
The Ballsmania Cup at Nottingham begins Friday night. Six legs of the Cup are run every Friday night for the next six weeks to provide sporting clubs in Nottinghamshire a chance to raise money. Each week a club is assigned a trap, and the position the hounds
from that trap finish in will score points for the club. The club with the most points from each week will be invited for a seventh night of racing, the Ballsmania Cup Final on November 19.
Here we preview the first two Ballsmania Cup Legs.
Ballsmania Cup - Leg 1 (A1)
In the first trap is Fabulous Delight, who has recently returned to the A1 grade after dropping to A2 and then A3. Since her return to A1 racing, Delight has finished second and fourth, getting off to a slow start in both those races. Don’t expect her to
finish in the top three if she gets off to another slow start tomorrow.
Hondo Lad will race from the second trap. Lad has been racing in A1 races consistently, but has only won twice in his past 15 races. The competition in this race is light so Lad could improve those stats.
Salacres Gift is known for good starts, and will race from the third trap. In his last race Gift gave up the lead late, but in the race previous to that he looked strong, leading from trap to finish.
Another candidate to win the first leg of the Ballsmania Cup is Trendy Toots, who will race from the fifth trap. Toots has shown weakness on the turns, and has not done well from the fifth trap since May, but could still easily finish in the top three.
Sheffield Sash will race from the sixth trap. Few expect Sash to be much of a factor in this race, but he has been known to force his way to the front of close packs.
Stick to the favourites in this one, but if you’re looking for the long odds, Salacres Gift could pay off.
Ballsmania Cup - Leg 2 (A2)
Dawsonnationwide will start the second leg from the first trap. He has only recently returned to A2 racing, collecting fourth and third place finishes. Considering the field, don’t expect much from him.
The second trap features an interesting choice for punters. Bardon Bob will make his A2 debut after winning his last A3 race by nine lengths. The odds could be long, but Bob has impressed at the A3 level, and could continue that trend tomorrow.
Droopys Jamie will race from the third trap. Jamie tied for first in his last race, but the race was a little slower than usual so he could be left behind in this one.
In the fourth trap is one of the race favourites, Droopys Kitty, who has just dropped from A1 after racing at that level for the past year. Just because she’s dropped down don’t expect her to continue the fall; she could very easily win this race.
In the fifth trap is Pineapple Liam, who does not win consistently, but if he can get an early lead it’s unlikely he’ll give it up. He could also be the race favourite, but the odds will be of better value with Bardon Bob or Droopys Kitty.
The sixth trap will house Bar McGinty, who has won his past two races, and is notorious for getting off to great starts. McGinty is another threat to win the second leg.
The second leg is a bit of a wild card with Bardon Bob and Droopys Kitty both moving from other grades to the A2 level; either hound could produce interesting odds.
Tags: