30 June 2023 , 17:19
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Golden Rules was the subject of a huge Northumberland Plate gamble on Friday after his owner urged punters to “Get on it, he’ll win”.
The odds of the stayer from the little known Monmouthshire yard of Deborah Faulkner were slashed by all the major firms with William Hill making him 7-2 favourite.
“Punters appear to have found the golden rule well in advance of Saturday’s Northumberland Plate, with the Deborah Faulkner-trained Golden Rules now heading the market following sustained support," said William Hill spokesperson, Lee Phelps.
“Since markets opened yesterday, this lightly-raced six-year-old, who was formerly trained by the Gosdens, has been heavily backed and we’ve had to cut his price by more than half from an opening 7-1 meaning he’d be a significant loser at this point.”
Faulkner, who trains only ten horses, brought Golden Rules back from a 21-month absence to win first time out at Kempton in March under Oisin Murphy.
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She said: “I don’t know who is gambling on him, it’s not me because I don’t bet.
“He’s in good order, Oisin sat on him on Wednesday and he was more than happy with him. It’s all in the lap of the gods now and I just hope we don’t end up with egg on our face, but you’ve got to be in it to win it.”
The vote of public confidence seemed to have been provoked by owner Gareth Cheshire who gave an interview to Sky Sports Racing before the field was declared.
“We bought him from Mr Gosden, minded him for 638 days,” he said. “He won first time out at Kempton. Oisin rode him. If he gets in, he will win.”