CAPE Town trainer Eric Sands scored a notable one-two in the World Sports Betting Champions Cup at Greyville last Saturday when Cape Derby winner Golden Ducat got up on the line to pip last year’s Met hero Rainbow Bridge by a short head.

This was the first Group 1 success for rider Donovan Dillon who was fighting to choke back the tears as he rode into the winner’s enclosure. According to Sands, he received plenty of suggestions about engaging a more fashionable jockey.

The former Liam Browne man said: “A lot of people questioned why I kept Donovan on but he took a lot of weight off to ride the horse in the Durban July and he did nothing wrong (he finished fourth). Also he knows the horse.”

The winner, by Philanthropist, was bred by Mary Slack and daughter Jessica, and is leased to 88-year-old Mike Rattray, who owns half-brother Rainbow Bridge.

Kasimir beaten

Champion sprinter Kasimir, in the Diane Nagle colours, started 15/10 favourite to repeat last year’s win in the WSB Mercury Sprint but he was beaten by a poor draw or, to be more accurate, by the South African obsession with not racing three or four wide.

Richard Fourie, drawn 12 of 14, spent the first two furlongs trying to slot in on the turning course. By the time he got where he wanted, he was six lengths off the leaders. His mount fairly flew in the final furlong but sixth was as close as he could get.

The race was won by the Oratorio gelding Van Halen ridden by Craig Zackey and trained by Corne Spies who was still rueing what might have been in last year’s race: “He shouldn’t have been beaten but he got terribly taken out.”

Diego de Gouveia, who has spent a lot of time with Mike de Kock, won both the two-year-old Group 1s on Anything Goes (by Prix de l’Abbaye winner Var) and the filly Sentbydestiny (Master Of My Fate) who beat the colts in the Premiers Champion by half a length.

Sales prices stand up

PRICES stood up well at the National Yearling Sale.

The R295,136 (€14,757) average was only 7.2% down on last year and the R7 million (€350,000) top price was the second best ever.

It was paid by new Summerhill Stud owner Henning Pretorius for Mary Slack’s Silvano full-brother to Hawwaam and half-brother to Rainbow Bridge and Golden Ducat.