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Cousin Casey lands a good draw at last (Picture: Candiese Lenferna)

 

David Mollett (Business Day)

Someone retrieve the smelling salts for Glen Kotzen. The Cape-based trainer will have fainted on learning his star three-year-old, Cousin Casey, has drawn pole position for the R1.5m Daily News 2000 at Greyville on May 27.
 
Kotzen must have thought he was cursed during the Cape season with a number of his runners — notably Cousin Casey and Hold My Hand — faring badly in the draw department.
 
In the Cape Met, Cousin Casey was drawn 14 out of 19 and even worse in the Cape Guineas with the three-year-old drawn 14 out of 15.
 
Gold Circle announced 15 nominations for the Daily News 2000 and the connections of See It Again, Dave The King and Anfields Rocket will be reasonably happy with single figure draws.
 
Turf Talk has revealed that trainer Robert Maroun will fit the blinkers to Anfields Rocket for the first time.
 
Not so lucky in the draw was the Mike de Kock inmate, Shoemaker, who drew 15 out of 15 and will start from the outside stall if accepting to run.
 
Sadly, it wasn’t all good news for Kotzen as his talented filly, Hold My Hand, drew 14 out of 17 for the grade 1 Woolavington 2000. In contrast, Sean Tarry’s grade 1 winner, Rain In Holland, drew in barrier two.
 
For the first time, the Woolavington — previously restricted to three-year-old fillies — has been opened up to older horses as well.
 
Then — in the Grade 3 Lonsdale Stirrup — Kotzen’s entry, Flying Bull, drew 22 of the 22 entries which will not have pleased the Cape trainer who has sent out 45 winners this season.