NORTHUMBERLAND PLATE
Saturday 29th June, 3:10pm
Trooper Bidsee @ 6/1
Yashin @ 15/2
Zoffee @ 8/1
Onesmoothoperator @ 8/1
Duke Of Oxford @ 8/1
view odds
*prices correct at time of writing.
RACE
Newcastle’s £150,000 Northumberland Plate – a.k.a. the Pitmen’s Derby – has been a summer sporting highlight in the NE of England for nearly 200 years, and remains a prime target for flat racing’s two-mile brigade.
The 2024 staging (3-10) doesn’t necessarily have the strength in depth of some years, but it’s still competitive with Sir Mark Prescott, a famously feared figure on these occasions (though he’s never won this), in the thick of it.
THE MARKET
Sir Mark has a fine record when turning around a runner quickly under a penalty, and Trooper Bisdee carries five-pounds extra for a truly bloodless, four-length win at Pontefract on Sunday. The horse is the very caricature of a progressive Prescott runner, improving stones aged three and now four, though he does have only limited experience of the surface.
The stable’s True Legend is a winner at the track and finished a luckless second at Goodwood. Tapeta experience has proved a notable advantage since the switch from turf in 2016, and Onesmoothoperator has won all of his three races on it. Trained like topweight Tashkhan by in-form Brian Ellison, who has a well-documented ambition to win the race, Onesmoothoperator is unraced since conceding nine pounds to Ascot winner Pledgeofallegiance and beating him a neck in April when they were second and third behind proper-yardstick Prydwen at Southwell.
Duke Of Oxford, Spartan Army and Howth all filled places behind Prydwen too, in their case over course and distance in March, from which Spartan Army probably emerged with most credit. Zoffee went one place better than 2023 in the Chester Cup with several of these rivals behind, mostly not beaten far – Grand Providence finished closest in fifth, while Spirit Mixer (13th) has performed best subsequently. Zoffee is a course and distance winner and up four pounds as he looks to improve on last year’s 15th, when he’d just been to Ascot.
Yashin, on synthetic debut, has good form over shorter with Kyprios. Evaluation returned to winning ways at a lower-level last time, while the Faulkners, second with big-stable reject Golden Rules last year, try to shine again with another big-stable reject, Golden Flame.
THE WINNER
On this surface, I’m with Zoffee and, at a price, previous second Spirit Mixer – you?
CORN’S QUARTET
Since winning his first-ever race, Kinross has never won his initial start of the season which may make the Chipchase (2-04) more open than it looks at first glance – Willem Twee loves the all-weather circuit.
Winter Reprise (4-50) rather lost his way until a much better effort last time; he’s well handicapped.
At Newmarket (3-25), it’s worth recalling that Tiber Flow, everyone’s favourite after bouncing back in joyous style last time after a crashing fall previously, is three from four over seven furlongs.
Even though Mark Prescott has the favourite for the ‘big ‘un’ at Newcastle, his no. 1 jockey Luke Morris is at The Curragh on Irish Derby weekend where ex-French filly Tasmania makes her hotly-anticipated stable debut (3-30).
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