Sly Man's Horses to Watch — Wednesday 9 September 2026
Nothing shorter than 5/1 makes my book. I'm looking beyond the obvious — but they still have to earn their place.
Five worth watching today. Read the rating, read the angle, then make up your own mind. I'm the wiry one in the silks reading form on a tablet while the favourites warm up — here's what's caught my eye.
Runninsonofagun
Davidson is firing at a 33% clip over the last month and the market has already noticed — this one is steaming with no drift in sight. Four signals aligned on Runninsonofagun at 17:17 Carlisle, and that kind of confluence at 11/2 is exactly why the name goes straight on the watchlist.
- Tristan Davidson — 33% strike rate last 30d (7/21)
- Money coming — strict-majority steamer, no drifters
- 4 independent signals aligned
Oisin Murphy is firing at 23% over the last 30 days and Balding's yard is ticking along at 19% — when those two combine, you sit up. Cosmic Girl tops the card on SR at 143 and is at 12/1, which looks like the market hasn't joined the dots yet.
- Oisin Murphy — 23% strike rate last 30d (26/114)
- SR 143 — top of the card
- Andrew Balding — 19% strike rate last 30d (26/134)
Ridgemaster has been knocking on the door in three straight runs, and the market isn't waiting around — money's been coming for this one all morning with no drift to speak of. Form reading 222 at 5/1 with a steamer signal attached is the kind of setup worth marking down early.
- Money coming — strict-majority steamer, no drifters
- Placed in last 3 starts (form: 222)
Money is moving on Alkumatic Jo Jo with purpose — strict-majority steaming, no drifters, which is the kind of clean market signal that tends to mean something rather than nothing. At 13/2 with that pattern underneath it, Jonny Peate and the Furtado yard are on the watchlist for the 17:00 at Kempton.
- Money coming — strict-majority steamer, no drifters
River Trieux tops the card at Cork with an SR of 151, and that kind of rating doesn't sit at 5/1 without catching the eye. W J Lee in the plate for Twomey is a pairing that knows how to get the job done when the price is right.
- SR 151 — top of the card