Fairy Glen looks good for Park Hill honours

By Nick Robson, Press Association

Fairy Glen sets a good recent standard for the others to aim at in the Betfred Park Hill Fillies’ Stakes at Doncaster on Thursday.

While she looked a useful filly at the end of last year, finishing second in a Listed race at Bath in October before winning one on the all-weather at Lingfield in November, she has taken her form to a completely new level since then.

Her trainers Simon and Ed Crisford took her out to Dubai and on her debut in the UAE in February, surprisingly over just nine furlongs given she had improved over trips in excess of a mile and a half, she ran out a cosy winner of a Group Two.

A month later she then stepped right back up in trip to have her first run over two miles in the Dubai Gold Cup on World Cup night and caused a shock in winning at 20-1.

There were some very good horses behind her that day, as the second, Caballo De Mar, has since won a Group One in France while the third, Al Nayyir, has won the Lonsdale Cup.

Fairy Glen was due to run at York in May but was pulled out with a bruised foot, but a few weeks later she made it to France for the Prix Vicomtesse Vigier where Caballo De Mar turned the tables on soft ground, but she was only beaten half a length into fifth.

Given a midsummer break she arrives here fresh and could still be improving.

Musical Times can maintain her unbeaten record when she steps into Group Two company in the Betfred May Hill Stakes.

A half-sister to the smart Real World, the Charlie Appleby-trained Lope De Vega filly made a winning debut at Newmarket in June and followed that up as a short-priced favourite at Yarmouth.

Both of those victories came over seven furlongs and while she will take on a mile for the first time here, she is bred to be better over further and rates an exciting prospect at this stage in her development.

Eve Johnson Houghton’s Night In Vegas has done little wrong this year and can bag his yard another valuable pot in the Weatherbys £300,000 2-Y-O Stakes.

The Lucky Vega colt has had five races, and his two defeats have come when beaten a length and a half in the Coventry Stakes and two and a half in the Richmond.

He regained the winning thread in a similar race to this at Newmarket, albeit not quite as competitive, but he was always in control.

There was talk of Royal Ascot for Roger Varian’s Knights Charge when he defied a penalty at Nottingham in May, but he has not been seen since. Connections can be rewarded for their patience with a win in the Pertemps Network Handicap, where a mark of 91 could seriously underestimate him.

Top tips for today’s UK meetings
TAB is betting on 4 UK meetings today. Here are the tips.
DONCASTER: Race 1: 14.15 Speed Of Sound, Race 2: 14.50 Night In Vegas, Race 3: 15.25 Knights
Charge, Race 4: 16.00 FAIRY GLEN (NAP), Race 5: 16.35 Musical Times, Race 6: 17.10 Al Wathba,
Race 7: 17.45 Rafe’s Da Man, Race 8: 18.20 Masterinthewoods.
WORCESTER: Race 1: 114.40 Jo Arengeot Bey AA, Race 1: 15.10 Snipe, Race 3: 15.45 Spanish
Darling, Race 4: 16.20 Baltic, Race 5: 16.55 Brionywells, Race 6: 17.30 Berry Edge, Race 7: 18.05
Traveling Soldier.
EPSOM: Race 1: 15.00 Astabuen, Race 2: 15.35 Cuban Lady, Race 3: 16.07 Patrol, Race 4: 16.42
Crooked Path, Race 5: 17.17 Shirakawa, Race 6: 17.52 Wild Dahlia, Race 7: 18.27 Post Rider.
LINGFIELD: Race 1: 15.40 My Maria, Race 2: 16.13 Marquessofanglesey, Race 3: 16.48 Fully
Stocked, Race 4: 17.23 Federal Envoy, Race 5: 17.58 Vitalline, Race 6: 18.33 Kaindy, Race 7:
19.05 Pure Passion, Race 8: 19.35 Highland Harvey, Race 9: 20.05 Thunder Goddess.
ALL TO COME: Night In Vegas AND Fairy Glen (Doncaster, Races 2 and 4).
For fields, race betting and more information go to www.tab.co.za