After the two pitch approach at Leopardstown yesterday, it's fair to say that the AK team weren't expecting too much in the way of business at The Curragh today. Since the redevelopment of the racecourse, the betting ring has been moved from its traditional place in front of the grandstand and consigned to the side of it out of sight and out of mind of many racegoers. That unsurprisingly has had a dramatic effect on the bookmakers' business. Still, we are eternal optimists in this game, today's eight-race card was a top quality one so would hopefully attract a big crowd to witness and bet on it.
The weather forecast was looking good on all known phone apps but if phone weather apps were punters bookmakers would be in clover. When Dave Tyrrell picked me up from outside the hotel, it was raining, I double checked the phone, nope, no rain forecast, even then when it was tiddling down. There was another slight change to plans, Dave O'Reilly was on the missing list, he'd called in sick with a lame off fore. With no replacement available it was down to just Dave T and I to take the bets and of course write a blog about the business. There were a few grumbles in the betting ring, confidence hadn't been high that many punters would turn up, it's fair to say that anyone in two minds would be unlikely to look out of the window, see the rain and say 'Let's go to the races', but we lived in hope.
The rain had cleared by the time Dave had finished setting up the gear, I did offer to help, honest, but he was probably quicker without me. The weather situation was double good news for Tidler, the shorts could stay on rather than the planned quick change into long strides. Work done, it was coffee and Dave’s partner’s delicious banana cake laced if I’m not mistaken, with chocolate chips to keep us going with the impending eight races. Very nice it was too, thank you, I guessed the chocolate was low calorie so tucked in guiltlessly.
Pitched up nice and early the first punter at the joint wasn’t actually having a bet but he was welcoming me to Ireland and added he likes my writing, I didn’t get your name Sir but it was very nice of you. The second punter, from England wanted a £1000 double but at top prices from obscure firms, he was going to try and get it on with them but was happy enough. The Irish betting ring is such a friendly place, before racing we had a laugh with Ray Mulvaney, the Frank Finigan firm over coffee and cake then a brief chat on the joint with Jerry stood up for Fionnan McCoy, all hospitable which is typical of the local racing people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting.
The first race on the card looked a toughie, Strike Red was opened the 13/2 favourite, the bookmakers then stood back and waited for the punters to back what they thought would win. The trouble was, despite a healthy looking crowd, there were very few punters having a bet. Why aren’t the bookmakers in front of the stands where they traditionally are and everyone can see them? The square ring’s layers were largely just staring at each other, Tidler was taking the money and making the book without the need for me to jump onto the stool and help, he handled the 19 bets without too much ado. The book held €500 at the off, My Mate Alfie won the race at 12/1. Dave T had laid €50 and €25 plus shrapnel over the winner, the book lost €600 which wasn’t a great start.
A punter had €200 on a Bedtime Story and Henri Matisse double before betting on the second race got going which was nice to lay. Before most punters started to limber for the next, Desmond White, working for AK yesterday but on a day out today treated me to a coffee over at the Queen’s Room, incidently named after a visit by Queen Victoria in the 1860’s. When I got back it appeared that punters visiting the joint to have a punt were almost as rare as Queens stopping by for coffee, Tidler had taken just seven bets. Then it perked up, a trade bet of €2500 - €300 American Sonja and €2600 - €400 Elizabeth Jane made things interesting, as did a visit from Kevin Duffy during betting, it was very nice to meet you after just Twitter/X interaction. Without much else to bulk up the field money the subjects of the two decent wagers were big enough bogies at the off in a book that held €1100 over 24 bets. As luck would have it, it turned out to be a good race to field a couple bets of the chunkier variety, Hanalia won at 12/1 and the book copped €690 which was a handy claw back of readies.
Between races Tiger Roll was parading, for those that don’t know he was originally bought for £10,000 by Nigel Hawke, Grand National winning jockey and now Devon based trainer, it takes a winner to spot one. Next up and Bedtime Story was an even money shot but it didn’t last for long. Dave was suddenly quite busy, 25 bets fielded and counting as they were going down. The AK firm were also offering forecast betting which appeared to be an attractive proposition to some of the passing punters looking for better value than the short one, now a ‘wrist-on’ chance. The only money taken on the favourite by AK Bets was the first leg of the aforementioned €200 double, but it’s not wise to leave an opening evens up about a 4/5 shot just to get it in the book. At the off there was €700 in the hod over 27 bets, growing all the time. The books that did get the even money in the bag over the jolly certainly did it right, Bedtime Story capitulated as the field swept by with a furlong to go, first home was stable mate of the jolly 11/2 chance Lake Victoria. The owners of the jolly were of course the same as that of the winner so nobody was too disappointed apart from those that snapped up the evens. The ring were happy too, not least Tidler who kept €587 of the €700 taken, little fish being sweeter and all that, even better the sun was shining, proper shorts weather.
‘20 bets already and there’s still 10 minutes to go’ chirped Dave betting on the fourth. Make that 21 after a €650 - €100 Bucanero Fuerte was offered and accepted shortly after he chirped that last chirp. You couldn’t describe the business as good but Dave was doing his best to call them in, no bets bluffed or turned down, not even the plentiful €1 each-ways asked for. At least those punters handed over coins and not the full treatment of a big note. The next bet was €300 over Bradsell at 9/4, you never know what’s coming in, it’s a bit like fishing with Dave in his shorts and juicy prices the bait. My first boss Jack Lynn used to shout ‘all big bets bluffed’, not Dave T. Although a carpet wasn’t a very big one in Jack’s day and certainly not today, Dave might have wished he’d bluffed it. ‘It was winning a monkey in the book before that bet’ he lamented after Bradsell won at 2/1, instead of copping €500 on a jolly the book did a bottle over the 34 bets held.
This heat featured what would have been the second leg of the lumpy double, Henri Matisse which opened at tips-on 10/11. As the horses went to post and the crowds surged into the ring from the paddock Dave T had taken eight bets, as they surged past him, on the way to surging out the other side of the betting ring short cut to the racecourse side, he’d still taken eight bets. €35 on the favourite at 5/6 made it nine and a fiver on Aomori City at 4/1 10. Let’s just say, at this point there appeared to be little chance Dave would be sent off for an emergency bowel movement due to a lumpy liability. ‘We take bets’ shouted our hero rather forlornly, as there was one left to load with 11 bets including the solitary forecast wager in the book. This was the sort of meeting you’d clerk on one page in a ledger and appeared to have peaked. As they jumped off, I asked Dave what the bogie was, he told me number six, just over a minute later Scorthy Camp won, number six in case you were wondering. The book lost €300.
The sixth heat, the Irish St Leger and race before the penultimate had Kyprios at the head of the market the bottle-on hotpot. Mid betting there appeared to be a little posse going around the ring having lumps on the favourite at 1/2 as there was a swathe of changes into 4/9 over at on the busy side of the ring, but they didn’t trouble Dave T on the AK joint. Further investigation suggested that there had indeed been substantial bets on the favourite along most of the line, it’s that strong over there that the punters got what they wanted with no need to come across to opposite side of the ring, also so strong that there was no hedging money forthcoming either. As the horses were being loaded the AK book held 18 bets and very little money. There was positive news though, it was by now so sunny that Dave was lending out his factor 50 to other bookmakers. As tends to happen when the real big money is down, they knew, the Irish St Leger went to Kyprios without too much faffing about. There appeared to be shell shocked silence from the opposite side of the ring, for once being out of it was a huge bonus. The AK pitch paid out €79 over the winner and copped €100 and felt extremely fortunate to do so.
No Such Thing was installed at 7/2 favourite for the penultimate and the book held 19 bets with 15 minutes remaining before the off. Being a generous round of drinks in a Temple Bar pub behind with two races to go, it was important to keep the punters coming in. That was helped by the books on the busy side heaving it up to pay the winning punters from the previous race. With eight minutes to go the bet total had reached 28, Dave had dished out more suncream, correction it was factor 30 not 50, but still had the AK gilet on, sweating ‘I need to keep the branding on’ he protested when others around him suggested he might be finding it a bit hot, you bagged a loyal one there AK. I nipped off to the ablutions past the band blasting out Oasis songs to a packed marquee full of dancers and returned very shortly afterwards to find the bet numbers had hit 41 and the price of the No Such Thing had plummeted to 9/4. It was a bit like missing a goal, but not quite, the punters kept coming in. The jolly was a bit mulish going into the stalls and ran similarly behind the first past the post Spirit D’Or which won at 13/2. The book had held €850 and copped €500 on the race, nudging the firm into the green in the process, ‘the busiest race today’ was Dave’s summing up, that’s 45 bets taken in glorious late summer sunshine.
Take Heart opened 11/4 favourite in the lucky last, it wasn’t that busy so Dave sent me off to buy a dozen donuts which he generously then shared with other bookmakers. He’d taken 17 bets with five minutes to go in that time, none of them worth writing about. I was assured it will be busier at Laytown tomorrow as bet 23 hit the bottom of the sparsely populated hod. Let’s hope it’s going to be as sunny too, one last trip to the seaside this summer. At the off the book held €700 with two losers waiting to ruin the day. This Songisforyou won at 9/1 and wasn’t one of them, the book kept €200 on the race making it a before exes and donuts winning day of €426. The last bet paid out to Eddie was €100 over placed Indigo Dream, he wondered if it would be big enough to make the blog, it certainly was today Eddie. Thanks for reading, just a small favour to ask, while you enjoy your Sunday evening, please spare a thought for laid up Celebrant Dave who we sincerely hope will be back in the game tomorrow for Laytown.
Simon Nott