The Glass Must Be Half-Empty

An upcoming announcement on the composition and reach of Irish racing's new drugs taskforce comes on the back of the Cobalt controversy currently dominating headlines in Australia. Three high-profile Australian trainers are under investigation and vehemently protest their innocence. There is also no evidence of cobalt chloride use in Irish racing. But if this taskforce is to be effective it is vital it remembers there was no evidence of steroids here either before the Fenton case. When it comes to doping the presumption always must be the cheats are a step ahead.

Since Irish racing has made a point of portraying the drugs fight as part of a global battle it is also important to operate on a basis of active suspicion rather than passive containment. If it truly is a global battle then Ireland can hardly be presumed to be some oasis of sanctity. That delusion has been well and truly shattered already. Racing here rarely misses an opportunity to stress its importance on the global scene so it's quite a step to believe cobalt has come as some pharmaceutical bolt from the blue to absolutely everyone in this part of the world.

There have been claims of EPO-type doping in Britain before. Cobalt is a variation on the EPO family of drugs, mimicking EPO by producing extra red blood cells which in turn allows the blood to carry more oxygen. The benefits to stamina are obvious, just as it is obvious that such a benefit could theoretically be of more sustained value in Europe than in speed-obsessed Australia.

New threshold levels for cobalt were recently introduced in Australia leaving some to believe either in an accidental rogue cluster of supplements or wonky technology, a personally admirable 'glass-half-full' attitude, although when the Victorian Integrity Commissioner is quoted that the focus of the investigation will not be on whether the horses involved were doped but "how, by whom, and when" it's hard to ignore sceptical 'glass-half-empty' suspicions.

When it comes to performance enhancing drugs, bitter sporting experience suggests an official requirement to be steadfastly 'glass-half-empty' in outlook is important. The idea that new tests and thresholds for a drug come out of some vacuum are delusional. There have clearly been worries about cobalt for some time and in jurisdictions outside Australia too. But reports in Queensland about shady characters travelling around, boasting of their "thriving business" do carry a certain ring here and suggest this may not be an isolated issue.

Accusations of scaremongering, and demands for evidence and proof, usually get flung back at what is currently, and necessarily, speculation. British trainer Charlie Mann got it in the neck over a decade ago when daring to suggest EPO was being used "every day." Show us the proof, he was ordered.

But the fight against doping primarily revolves around attitude, an attitude of actively seeking out proof and being seen to do so, not having it handed up on a plate. Ireland's new taskforce will have to prove its credentials about whether it possesses serious intent or is simply another cosmetic exercise wrapped in a self-aggrandising title.

And that means setting a tone of intent in terms of fighting the doping scourge, no matter what the substance might be. Because while substances put into horses can vary the human instinct to look for an edge if they can get away with it is unvarying.

It may not be particularly edifying but racecourse chat has turned to speculating on which trainers might be about to wave the white business flag and follow Charlie Swan into retirement. Despite an official instinct to keep the best side out in terms of attention-grabbing press-release headlines, Horse Racing Ireland's statistical report for 2014 couldn't disguise some stark figures and the job a lot of trainers face in simply staying afloat. More than a few are persevering simply because they have no immediate viable alternative way to make any sort of living.

The temptation is always to take agricultural tales of woe with several shovelfuls of salt and there are some trainers capable of making the cutest of cute 'hoor' farmer look naive. But there's no doubt an awful lot of people are under an awful lot of pressure.

Sometimes, though, trainers hardly help themselves: no doubt there were more than a few 'cute-hoor' heroes laughing at their Armagh based colleague Keith Watson when he elected to give Aladdins Cave a first start over fences at eleven years of age in a Grade 2 against Vautour. A large dollop of professional condescension was probably mixed in too.

But the cold hard financial fact is that Watson picked up E7,500 in runner-up prizemoney after Real Steel's last fence exit. Throw in how the horse got a nice racecourse school with no likely impact in future handicap terms and who should be condescending to whom? It appeared to be another small example of how the overwhelming big-picture focus on prizemoney hasn't impacted on many owners and trainers instinct to wait for a win, no matter what the pot.

The race is likely to be primarily remembered though for Vautour's return to winning form. He looked to have a 140 horse in Real Steel well and truly cooked before the last and the two and a half mile JLT looks a logical festival option for him. Maybe only an impressive win there will fully bolster the reputation he knocked at Christmas. But long term if a horse with such innate class can truly stay three miles then the possibilities are vast.

However of all the weekend performances maybe Kitten Rock's continuing progression up the pattern ranks with a Grade 3 win at Naas was the most intriguing.

The ammunition Edward O'Grady has had available to fire at big races has been limited in recent years, caught up in the economic downturn along with so many others, yet he remains a famously shrewd and knowledgeable trainer and when he talks about Kitten Rock as a contender for the Champion Hurdle it's impossible not to sit up and take notice.

There will be widespread surprise if Kitten Rock actually goes and wins the thing. But if the forensic O'Grady is thinking in such elite terms then this is a horse to reckon with.