Fallon´s Gift Horse For Punters

Kieren Fallon proved himself the punters´ friend again at Goodwood on Saturday as he delivered Gift Horse to lead on the line and land the Vodafone Stewards´ Cup.

Winning trainer David Nicholls was taking the race for a second time as he contributed towards a clean sweep of the four placings for Yorkshire stables in the #100,000 thriller.

Fallon had survived a heart-stopping scare in the parade ring before the race when the winner lashed out at the rider as he attempted to climb aboard.

Gift Horse´s hind legs flailed perilously close to Fallon as he dived for cover from the horse, who was already being led around by Nicholls having proved too strong for his stable lass in the preliminaries.

That was enough to deter some punters, who promoted another of Nicholls´ runners, Lafi, to 4-1 favourite.

But the 9-2 winner made up ground hand over fist close home to deny Paul Hanagan on the Richard Fahey-trained Fonthill Road by a neck, with Fantasy Believer two lengths away in third and Merlin´s Dancer, also trained by Nicholls, in fourth.

As expected, the field split into two groups with horses drawn in high-numbered stalls always having the edge in the six-furlong cavalry charge.

Merlin´s Dancer went three lengths clear at one stage and still led inside the final furlong until Fonthill Road went on.

He looked the likely winner before Fallon produced Gift Horse towards the centre of the track to claim the spoils.

A relieved Fallon said: 'That must be the worst ride I have ever given a horse. I couldn´t really get out, but when I did he absolutely flew. It´s amazing.

'I got way too far back and if he didn´t have so many gears I would have been left behind.

'It was just the way the race was run. Everybody wanted to be in the same position over on the far side, they didn´t spread out like they normally would.

'I was trying to follow one or two that I fancied to take me further than they did. I was stuck behind one horse who kept taking me back.

'It worked out in the end, but I got lucky. There was a lot of speed on my side and that helped.'

Reliving the pre-race incident, he added with a smile: 'It is a good job Dandy (Nicholls) was holding his head or I wouldn´t have been riding him.

'He was bucking and kicking and showing that he was fresh and well - Dandy has done a great job getting him ready.'

Nicholls said that the horse was 'just saying hello to him'.

'It was a bit close, but I´d have ridden him myself if Kieren had been hurt. And I´d have won on him,' Nicholls, who also won the race as a jockey on Soba in 1982, went on.

'You´ve got to ride him like that - you´ve got to wait. You´ve got to be confident - one kick and he kept him while the end. He gave him a great ride - he´s the top man, the king of the world.

'He´s only a young horse and it´s taken us a while to get to know him. We went too soon at Epsom and too soon at York too.

'I know you won´t believe me but I was always confident, all the way to the line.

'Merlin´s is quick and Pieter Breughel is too and I knew he´d get a lead off them.

'He was fresh and well today. Lafi might be in need of a break but this horse was just full of himself.'

The winner was purchased at the end of last season out of James Fanshawe´s stable for 25,000 guineas by his new owners ´Alfi and partners´, a syndicate which includes tipster Henry Rix and racing journalist Rob Wright.

Rix and Wright were also involved when Nicholls landed this race with Tayseer in 2000.

Predictably, bookmakers were left licking their wounds.

Neal Wilkins, UK PR manager for VC Bet, said: 'Gift Horse was certainly not that for the bookies!

'Backed from 14-1 ante-post down to 9-2, he was also the selection of Pricewise in the Racing Post. And the placed horses were all popular too.'

Fahey was phlegmatic about missing out so narrowly.

He said: 'I thought he had got it for a stride or two. But I´ve looked at the race on the re-run and if David hadn´t got it he would have been unlucky.

'I thought we had it when he went two lengths clear, but the other horse was better than him. It´s the Ayr Gold Cup for our horse now.'

Hanagan added: 'I have always loved this horse ever since he first came into the yard as a yearling and it would be marvellous to win a big race on him.

'I thought it was going to happen today but we´ve just been caught. He has run super and I´ve no excuses.'

Ayr is also the aim for third-home Fantasy Believer, of whom trainer John Quinn said: 'He just came up against two younger and progressive horses, who just had the edge on him.

'The draw was absolutely vital. Those on the stands side had no chance and yet when I walked the course this morning I thought it was faster on the stands side and if the draw had been today I would have chosen a low number.'

? PA Sport