I WAS as shocked as everyone else at Perth on Wednesday night as news filtered through about the sudden death of trainer Alan Swinbank.
It was just a couple of weeks ago at Hamilton Park that I had interviewed him after what turned out to be his final winner, the Joe Fanning-ridden Genres.
Over the past five years it was the Lanarkshire track that had supplied him with more turf winners than anywhere else. Even longer ago, who will ever forget the memorable triumph of Collier Hill in the 2004 Braveheart Stakes.
Alan always had Scottish owners in his yard and it will be strange not seeing his runners north of the border any more.
THE £50,000 Class 1 listed contest – the Tennent’s British Stallion Studs EBF Rothesay Stakes – run over one mile two furlongs takes centre stage on Tennent’s Raceday at Ayr on Wednesday. Last year’s inaugural running of the race, confined to fillies and mares, was won by the Keith Dalgleish-trained Maleficent Queen and the five-year-old is among this year’s entries as is the Jedd O’Keefe- trained More Mischief who was runner-up last year.
Roger Varian is sending his 108-rated filly Nezwaah from Newmarket and her last outing was in a Grade 1 contest in Woodbine, Canada when she finished seventh of 12. With entries in the Group 1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot in June and the Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh in July she is obviously highly rated by connections.
Other notable entries include three from the Ralph Beckett yard – Desert Haze, Pure Art and Very Dashing, and Sir Michael Stoute’s Playful Sound.
The main supporting race on the card is the Guinness Handicap over five furlongs and Jim Goldie will run Tommy G, a winner at the track earlier in the month, while Keith Dalgleish saddles Dark Defender.
The opening race is the EBF Stallion Appletiser Novice Stakes over six furlongs and Richard Fahey could hold the key here with Ventura Dragon, the mount of Paul Hanagan.
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