Tote double minimum bet

The decision to postpone Cork's Sunday fixture to the following weekend will afford the county's Tote punters an additional seven days in which to come to terms with the latest announcement by Tote Ireland.

As and from December 2nd there will be an increase at cash sales counters in the minimum win and place pools stake to £2.

Appreciative from past experience that this news would provoke a backlash from the small punter, the general manager John White offers a loophole in that those anxious to limit their bet to £1 may still do so through the self-service "Touch Tote" betting stations.

While this will take the sting out of the increase, it is a fact that pensioners, who in terms of customer numbers represent a significant share of the Tote clientele at the weekday meetings, are not natural supporters of new technology.

If you think this is an exaggeration, you will not have been reading the American election news from Florida, where the butterfly ballot papers produced many thousand spoiled votes.

The £1 bet will still rule at Thurles this afternoon and in a quota of the races it would seem quite sufficient.

One exception is the long-distance maiden hurdle (2-30), where Chris de Burgh's Reggae Rhythm can strike the right chord.

Henry de Bromhead is faring well since taking over from his father Harry at the start of the year, and Reggae Rhythm ran a cracker on the flat to split a pair of established chasers, Knife Edge and His Song, at Gowran Park and then lost out by a head only over hurdles to First Hand at Tramore last week.

Cromwells Keep (12-30), in his comeback race at Cork, had tried to make all the running and was still in front when he fell three out against Kings Valley.

Westfield Star (1-30) goes jumping, and while he never managed to win on the flat this season, he came very close at Galway in October when beaten a short-head and a neck by Ridyan and Janefer John.

Kilbyrne King (1-0) was favourite on his last Thurles handicap chase start but unseated his rider before things became serious. He had been running with consistency prior to that and has a a clear chance here.

Good Time Melody has an outstanding chance to win at his third attempt over fences in the Silver Buck Handicap Chase at Wincanton today. Alan King's consistent seven-year-old deserves a change of luck after filling second spot in both his races so far this season.

He ran a most encouraging race on his chasing debut when four lengths runner-up to the more experienced and fitter Time of Flight in a four-runner affair at Wetherby a month ago.

And he showed the benefit of that outing by getting within six lengths of the highly-rated Capitaine Leau at Cheltenham earlier this month.

Good Time Melody was having the eighth race of his career that day and with more improvement to come can land his first success.