I hope you've all enjoyed the exciting racing and World Cup action over the past week as much I have. For me, I was sad of course to see Germany miss the chance to challenge for their fourth World Cup title, after losing to Spain 0-1 on Thursday morning. I felt it was a very tactical match as both teams played quite cautiously, trying hard not to concede any goals. The absence of the suspended Thomas Müller was probably crucial to Germany as they did not show the same cohesion and fluency in their counter-attacks as in previous matches.
When Spain stepped up the tempo in the second half, one German lapse in concentration at a set piece cost them the only goal of the match, with Spanish defender Carlos Puyol sending a powerful header to the net. However, I think the German team has overall played very well in this World Cup tournament, and I hope they will relax a bit more and regain their fluidity against Uruguay in the play-off match tonight. A victory will take Die Mannschaft to the same third place they achieved in the last World Cup on home turf four years ago.
As for the final which will take place in the early hours of Monday, Hong Kong time, we shall see either the Netherlands or Spain make history by becoming World Cup winners for the first time. Spain will be hoping to emulate their success in the Euro Championships two years ago, while the Oranje will be making their first journey to the World Cup finals in 32 years. It will certainly be a match not to be missed by our local football fans, and I will join a group of Club colleagues to watch it at Happy Valley Racecourse tomorrow.
I know Paul The Octopus – the mollusc based in a German aquarium who has famously predicted the results of all matches involving the German team in this World Cup correctly – has chosen Spain to win the final. Well, I think Spain holds a better chance in this match, too. The team have shown gradual improvement after entering the knock-out stage and striker David Villa is now in sizzling form. With some highly talented players on the bench who will give Spain a range of options for tactical change, I expect to see them perform well tomorrow.
The success of every football team requires relentless training, so that the players can not only enhance their own skills but also, most importantly, build teamwork. The same is true in other sports like horse racing, and some of our colleagues in the Racing Division work very hard to extend their knowledge of racing and horses, and better understand the roles played by others, through joining the racing training programmes offered by the Club.
We are delighted that the Hong Kong Council of Academic Accreditation and Vocational Qualification has given official accreditation to six of our racing training programmes, starting last month. This really takes our racing training system to a new level, as it means that all these programmes have full recognition in the local vocational education system.
Last Thursday at Sha Tin Racecourse, more than 130 staff members were presented with certificate for these courses, including a number of them who achieved outstanding results. Although I was not able to attend due to other commitments, I would like to offer my congratulations to all awardees and certificate holders concerned. I am very impressed by their commitment to self-learning and continuing studies, even though it has meant sacrificing some of their leisure time.
Getting back to our horse races, the season is almost coming to the end and this year's finale will be rather special, as we will be hosting a farewell day meeting at Sha Tin tomorrow, then a farewell night meeting at Happy Valley on Wednesday. This will give our fans the chance to enjoy double racing excitement before the summer break. At Sha Tin tomorrow, besides enjoying some entertaining racing action with the first race starting at 12.25pm, you can also find out if your favourite horses or jockeys will be crowned Horse of the Year, Most Popular Horse, or Most Popular Jockey in the Champion Awards ceremony.
Please also remember to stay for a while after the last race, as we will stage a gala performance featuring popular local TV stars on the turf. This will be followed by a parade of jockeys who will greet racing fans and hand out souvenirs to thank them for their support over the season. So please come and join the party at Sha Tin tomorrow.
As for the gripping contest for this season's Jockeys’ Championship, Brett Prebble managed to pull one win back on Douglas Whyte at Wednesday’s Happy Valley meeting, but he still trails by two in the standings. In my opinion it will be quite difficult for Prebble to make the ground on Whyte who has much better chances on Sunday with horses like Showtime, Hot Shot, Enhanced, Jimson The Best, Sichuan Success and Seek N’ Destroy!
The Sha Tin Mile Trophy is one of the examples in which Prebble has a good chance with Young Elite, but he will be facing a strong opponent – the John Size-trained Enriched, which will be ridden by Whyte. Enriched ran a good second last time after a break. I will be expecting this four-year-old to improve further tomorrow and thus should be the horse to beat. The other main chances in this 1600m event are Jackpot Delight and Yummy Spirits who will appreciate going back to the mile trip this time.
The Sha Tin Mile Trophy is one of the examples in which Prebble has a good chance with Young Elite, but he will be facing a strong opponent – the John Size-trained Enriched, which will be ridden by Whyte. Enriched ran a good second last time after a break. I will be expecting this four-year-old to improve further tomorrow and thus should be the horse to beat. The other main chances in this 1600m event are Jackpot Delight and Yummy Spirits who will appreciate going back to the mile trip this time.
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