Klawervlei Stud’s homebred G1 Cape Guineas winner WILLIAM LONGSWORD (Captain Al) has had a great season thus far, and his good season has continued this week.

William Longsword has had a winner at each of the three last racemeetings, with his son COMMANDING providing jockey Richard Fourie with his 300th win of the 2023-2024 season at Hollywoodbets Scottsville on Sunday. Promising two-year-old Commanding, who had contested the R1 000 000 G3 City Of Cape Town Cape Of Good Hope Nursery last time out, got off the mark in fine style on Sunday.

The Glen Kotzen trained colt romped home to break his maiden decisively by three lengths, as he put daylight between himself and his rivals. Bred by Maine Chance Farms (Pty) Ltd, Commanding races for Messrs R P Macnab, S H G Pretorius, A Robertson, L Robertson & J M Singh.

His sire William Longsword struck again at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Tuesday when his daughter DOUBLE DREAM won at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth.  The mare, trained like both William Longsword and Captain Al by Vaughan Marshall, stormed home from off the pace and got up to land the Perfectly Placed Class 5 (F&M) (1200m). Bred by Klawervlei Stud, the Vaughan Marshall owned Double Dream was winning for a third time when victorious on Tuesday.

William Longsword’s winning streak continued at Hollywoodbets Greyville the following day when his son IMAGINABLE won the seventh race on the card. The four-year-old, one of five winners on the card for his trainer Alyson Wright, hit the front 150m from home and stayed on gamely to win by just under half a length. Bred by Varsfontein Stud, Imaginable was one of three winners for his owner Rikesh Sewgoolam at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Wednesday.

Not only has William Longsword been enjoying a great season, so too has his family. William Longsword’s G1 South African Fillies Sprint winning half-sister REAL PRINCESS (Trippi) is the dam of the hugely exciting filly GIMME’S COUNTESS (Gimmethegreenlight), who recently  romped home to a more than four length win on debut. A full-sister to dual G1 winner GIMME A PRINCE, Gimme’s Countess has been entered in the G1 Allan Robertson Championship.

The sire of this season’s star sprinters DYCE and RULERSHIP, as well as high-class three-year-olds WILLIAM IRON ARM (a runner in Saturday’s G1 Daily News 2000) and SABRE STRIKE, William Longsword has five lots on offer at the upcoming Cape Racing Winter Yearling Sale, and a single lot on offer at the 2024 KZN Yearling Sale.