I have spoken to the experts and studied form but could an 83 year old lady from Cape Town and the pictured porridge package hold the key to riches in this years Durban July?

I come from a family that has always enjoyed a punt. Not all of them mind you, but may late grandfather Robert Powell loved his horses and I often wonder how he would have done at sports betting had he been born in a different era? Anyway I credit him (some would argue that credit is a poor choice of words) for me being the fanatical punter that I am today and he rubbed off on my Gran as well who has always enjoyed a flutter on the horses.

On Thursday night I decided to give her a call to see who she fancied in the July and expecting my voice she spoke in hushed tones lest any of the other old gals in her village should hear her.

I could hear her voice was cracking with excitement as she reminded me of how a good few years back during a visit to Kenilworth she had backed a horse called Jet of Gold and we had all laughed at her as her reason was a packet that she had found in the kitchen that morning had a gold pattern on it and was from Jet.

Needless to say the horse arrived and I think Gran has been on the look out for similar omens ever since.

The urgency in her voice was becoming apparent as she reached the business end of the conversation. “Brent” she whispered “I think I have this years Durban July winner and it is no favourite”. Intrigued I pulled the phone a little bit closer to my ear as Gran described how my Aunt (not a gambler) had totally unbeknown to her delivered the news that very morning.

She had arrived at my Gran’s place with an empty packet of porridge (which she wanted my Gran to go and buy) and Gran described how there was 4 Aces on the packet in the middle of a circle. She paused waiting for me to digest the news and I strained hard to make the connection with the July as I thought of the 20 entrants. Eventually I arrived at Service Ace an 80/1 shot barely given a mention by the leading pundits. “Service Ace Gran?” I asked, “but that has got no chance”!

“Now now my boy neither did Jet of Gold as I recall” she said triumphantly and then the real analysis began. She was, having spent the better part of the day thinking about it, confident that the Ace was leading her to Mike Azzie’s rank outsider but why were there 4 of them and what could that mean?

I suggested that perhaps it meant that Service Ace would only beat 4 horses home but she batted this negative view away without missing a beat and told me that in her opinion it means no 4 Irish Flame the favourite is also going to run a big race. “Play the swinger lad” she crowed, “it will pay rockets”.

After promising to tell my Mom (also someone who backs horses based on the shape of ice cream wrappers found in her dustbin, Golden Globe delivered in the November Consolation at 80/1 in this fashion a good few years back) Gran and I said our goodbyes and I assured her that I would indeed have a flutter on her swinger and perhaps a speculative each way on Service Ace.

It dawned on me afterwards that for all my interviewing of experts like Neil Andrews (Fort Vogue) and Jason Dedekind (Aslan) and reading the preview of Simon Emery (Happy Valley) I was in fact no closer to making my own selection.

For all of the analysis that goes into a race like the July there is something exciting about my Gran’s approach and if she hits this one then watch out Paul the Octopus because the Gambling Granny is out to get you!

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