Kuala Lumpur : Dec 10, 2024

Lim’s Craft, Emphatic, Matilda shine at KL trackwork on Dec 10

If there is a horse that is eager to get on with the job, it is Boy Xander.

Sparingly raced, he has only had three starts since May 28, 2022.

Yes, you read it correctly, 2022, with his last win on April 9 that year.

Indeed, since that day in May, he was missing from the track for a whopping 864-days and only reappeared on Oct 8, 2024 when he won a trial over the Selangor Turf Club’s 1,000m.

Satisfied with that showing, trainer Cheng Han Yong sent him to the races on Oct 13 and it was almost a winning return.

Alas, it was not to be. Boy Xander had to settle for second spot.

Well, the now seven-year-old had two more starts on Oct 27 and Nov 23 and on both occasions he made the board, finishing fourth to Limitless Roar in Sungai Besi and Brandenburg in Ipoh.

It has been almost three weeks since that last jump-out but the short break seems to have done him a world of good.

How so? Well, on the morning of Dec 10, Boy Xander was one of the star performers on the training track.

Taking off from the 600m mark, he ran the trip in 39.2sec.

Yes, the son of Shamexpress is in a hurry to get going and, come Dec 15, we should see him turn in a stylish performance in what will be just his ninth race start.

His connections have picked a winnable sort of race for their runner.

It is a Class 4 (A) sprint over the 1,200m and, given his speed from off the blocks, he could make it from go to whoa.

Another race which will be eagerly anticipated on Dec 15 appears to be the Class 4 (A) sprint over the longer trip of 1,400m.

It could bring together a field of 10 and, drawing a line through the gallops on Dec 10, there are two who could dominate the betting and, maybe even, the finish.

Lim’s Craft ran the 600m in 37sec while Emphatic went over the same trip in 39sec.

On paper at least, both hold winning chances.

Taking it from the top, we have Lim’s Craft.

The nine-year-old had his last start at Kranji on July 21. Then, under the charge of Steven Burridge, he scored eight wins – going back to April 7, 2019.

Sent over to Lawson Moy’s Kuala Lumpur yard, he had a 63-day break before racing fans at Sungai Besi had their first glimpse of this former Kranji galloper.

That was on Sept 22 and he would have gone into many notebooks when he ran second to Infinity Glory.

That race was over the 1,200m. Sent over the 1,400m on Oct 13, Lim’s Craft led all the way and was victorious for his new trainer.

He was beaten by a shorthead at his next start and, at his last start on Nov 24, the son of Smart Missile took third in a 1,300m race on the long course at Sungai Besi.

As for Emphatic, his last few starts have been nothing to shout about but, on the strength of this most recent workout, he could come into the reckoning.

Prepared by Richard Lines, Emphatic’s last win was way back on Oct 21, 2023. That was in a 1,200m race over the short course at Kuala Lumpur.

Lines has been patient with his six-year-old who will be having his 18th start in the race coming up. On paper, he looks like one who must go into those novelty bets.

Down the card and over to the Class 5 (A) race over the 1,150m, keep a watchful eye on Matilda.

Already a nine-year-old, she certainly does not look like she is ready to be put out to pasture.

On the contrary, and for good measure, she might even knock in a win when she takes on those Class 5 rivals over the sharp sprint.

Right now, one thing for sure is that she is ready for that assignment coming up.

Sent out for a morning gallop, she had a good stretch-out when she ran the 600m in a flashy 36.8sec.

Trainer Ananthen Kuppan would have been mighty pleased with that effort as her last two runs were disappointing.

Both times, on Nov 2 and Dec 1, Matilda never landed a blow and she finished down the course.

Yes, on her “record” she might not have too many fans, but she is not a lost cause.

And, you never know. As her name does seem to suggest, if not taken seriously, she might just waltz in.

Source : Brian Miller