I played fantasy AFL - what's different in Star Stable?

Most of us who are involved in the Anipal GeeGees Cup also played fantasy AFL and the basic concept behind both games is similar.  There are, however, several differences.

GREEN DOTS

Like with the AFL, green dots indicate horses who will be racing at the next meeting.  Green dots will usually appear on your screen the day before lockout.  But unlike fantasy AFL, the number of green dots and red dots you have doesn't really matter.  It is extremely unlikely that you will ever have 10 green dots.  This is perfectly normal and you needn't worry even if you have more red dots than green dots.  Theoretically, a stable with only one horse running at a particular meeting could score higher than a stable with multiple runners.  The thing to remember is that a racehorse is not like a footballer who can back up week to week.  Most horses will only start two or three times during the competition.

HORSE VALUES

Horse values only rise in Star Stable, they never go down.  There are no breakevens and if a horse puts in a bad run it will not lose you any money from your budget.

NO HEAD TO HEAD MATCH-UPS

The Anipal GeeGees Cup is just a straight league and is ranked according to how much prizemoney you accumulate.  There are no head to head match-ups in Star Stable.  There is also no final series - every stable plays right to the end and has a chance of winning our league.

WILDCARD TRADES

Just like fantasy AFL, you can make two trades during each trade period.  But Star Stable gives you the opportunity of making a third wildcard trade on two occasions.  When you use your wildcard trades is entirely up to you.

NO EMERGENCIES/BENCH

In Star Stable there is no bench so you do not have to choose any emergencies.  There is also no vice stable champion so I cannot emphasise strongly enough to MAKE SURE YOUR STABLE CHAMPION HAS A GREEN DOT.  If your stable champion has a red dot, you will not have an opportunity to win double the prizemoney for that meeting.

NO LIVE UPDATES

I am not going to lie - this is a major flaw with Star Stable.  The organisers claimed they were going to include this feature a while back but they didn't, and I do not foresee that they will include it this time.  The major drawback of this is that you will not be able to see everyone else's stable (and what horses they had running) until several hours after the meeting has finished.  This makes it hard to know how everyone else is faring while the race meeting is in progress.  But the beauty of Twitter is that we can release any information when we want so feel free to announce what horses you have starting at each meeting if you like.  I will be doing so (after lockout, anyway *fiercely protects his stable from prying eyes*)!

With only a week to go until the start of the Anipal GeeGees Cup, you should be close to finalising your stable.  Remember you can always contact me on Twitter if you have any questions.

Latest news and odds

It was an interesting couple of days of racing this weekend which saw me replace half of the horses in my stable.

Kermadec was by far the most impressive winner this week and is now favourite for the Cox Plate.  Trainer Chris Waller has confirmed Kermadec will bypass the Epsom Handicap on the first day of our competition in preference for the Caulfield Stakes a week later.  Waller is also likely to start former Metropolitan favourite Silverball in the Epsom instead.

Exosphere and Kinglike are also unlikely to start in the Caulfield Guineas with their trainers keeping both colts for sprinting races.

Another Chris Waller runner, Preferment, has been the big shortener in Cups markets after his fighting win in the Hill Stakes.

This is the current betting for the feature races:

Metropolitan (October 3)

$5 Magic Hurricane
$9 Preferment
$11 Complacent
$13 The United States, Orbec, Amoonqith
$15 Beaten Up, Beyond Thankful, Who Shot Thebarman, Amralah
$17 Our Ivanhowe, Bold Sniper, Junoob, Foundry, Astronomos, Maurus, Havana Cooler

Epsom (October 3)

$4 Winx
$8 Pornichet
$9 Royal Descent
$13 Catkins
$15 Sweynesse, Saddler's Lake, Noble Protector
$17 Hauraki, Lucky Hussler, Stratum Star, Silverball, Disposition, Lucia Valentine, Entirely Platinum, Rudy

Spring Champion Stakes (October 10)

$7 Wudang Mountain, Rageese
$9 Devil Hawk, Too Good To Refuse
$11 Vanbrugh, Press Statement, Shards
$13 Gold Ambition, Tatoosh
$15 Sempre Libera, Flying Achilles
$17 Kimberley Star, Arsonist, Snoopy, Sagaronne

Thousand Guineas (October 10)

$4 Stay With Me
$5.50 Pasadena Girl
$9 Don't Doubt Mamma
$11 Sagaronne, Alaskan Rose
$13 Sacred Eye
$15 Miss Gunpowder
$17 Jameka, Pearls,

Caulfield Guineas (October 10)

$3.50 Press Statement
$3.75 Ready For Victory
$8 Bassett
$13 Santa Ana Lane, Rageese
$15 Mr Individual, Tulsa, Bon Aurum
$17 Shards, Puritan, Keen Array

Caulfield Cup (October 17)

$11 Fame Game, Rising Romance
$15 Set Square, Preferment, Hokko Brave
$17 Gust Of Wind, Hartnell, Hauraki, Complacent, Lucia Valentina
$21 Kirramosa, Volkstok'n'barrell, The United States, Mongolian Khan, Magic Hurricane

Cox Plate (October 24)

$7 Kermadec
$8 Fawkner
$11 Contributer
$13 Highland Reel, Winx
$15 Gailo Chop, Hartnell, Arod, Pornichet, Criterion

VRC Derby (October 31)

$7 Tarzino
$11 Ragnaar
$15 Etymology, Zacada, He's Our Rokkii
$17 Extra Choice
$21 Celtic Tiger, Press Statement

Melbourne Cup (November 3)

$9 Fame Game
$15 Max Dynamite, Preferment, Who Shot Thebarman
$17 Hokko Brave, Hartnell
$21 Mongolian Khan, Gust Of Wind, Order Of St George, Snow Sky, Trip To Paris, Kingfisher, Sky Hunter

Latest spring carnival odds

After an exciting weekend of racing highlighted by Winx's amazing win in the Theo Marks Stakes, here are the latest odds for the big races in our competition.

Market movers include Winx (who is now favourite for the Epsom) and Fawkner (now outright favourite for the Cox Plate).  Exosphere has been a big mover for the Caulfield Guineas but there are whispers that he might be saved for shorter distance races.

EPSOM HANDICAP (3 October)

$4 Winx
$9 Kermadec
$11 Pornichet, Royal Descent
$13 Sweynesse, Alpine Eagle, Noble Protector
$15 Stratum Star
$17 It's Somewhat, Lucia Valentina, Turn Me Loose, Hartnell, Hauraki, Hi World, Hooked

THE METROPOLITAN (3 October)

$8 Magic Hurricane, Silverball, Hartnell
$11 Hauraki, Complacent
$15 Zee Zeely, Preferment, The United States, Gust Of Wind, Orbec, Who Shot Thebarman, Kapour, Astronomous, Maurus
$17 Kirramosa, Beaten Up, The Offer, Junoob, Our Ivanhowe, Foundry

THOUSAND GUINEAS (10 October)

$4.50 Stay With Me
$5.50 Pasadena Girl
$11 Alaskan Rose, Sagaronne
$15 Miss Gunpowder
$17 Sacred Eye, Jameka
$21 Harlem River, Speak Fondly, Ottoman

CAULFIELD GUINEAS (10 October)

$4.20 Exosphere
$5 Press Statement
$5.50 Ready For Victory
$12 Santa Ana Lane
$13 Kinglike
$21 Bon Aurum, Rageese, Mr Individual, Puritan

SPRING CHAMPION STAKES (10 October)

$6 Wudang Mountain
$9 Press Statement
$11 Shards, Rageese
$13 Snoopy, Vanbrugh
$15 Sagaronne, Mawahibb
$17 Mr Darcy, Kimberley Star, Gold Ambition, Sempre Libera

CAULFIELD CUP (17 October)

$13 Fame Game, Hartnell, Rising Romance
$15 Gust Of Wind, Set Square, Hokko Brave, Hauraki
$17 Lucia Valentina, Complacent
$21 Mongolian Khan, Preferment, Max Dynamite, Volkstok'n'barrell, The United States

COX PLATE (24 October)

$8 Fawkner
$11 Contributer
$13 Winx, Highland Reel, Kermadec, Hartnell
$15 Criterion, Pornichet
$17 The Cleaner
$21 Rising Romance, Press Statement, Arod, Alpine Eagle

VRC DERBY (31 October)

$15 Zacada
$17 Extra Choice
$21 Deadly Shadow, Press Statement
$26 Etymology, River Wild, Prince Of Brooklyn, Ready For Victory, Kentucky Flyer, Tarquin, Manhattan Blues

MELBOURNE CUP (3 November)

$9 Fame Game
$15 Max Dynamite
$17 Hartnell, Hokko Brave
$21 Sky Hunter, Snow Sky, Mongolian Khan, Order of St George, Kingfisher, Trip To Paris, Gust Of Wind, Protectionist, Who Shot Thebarman

Current spring carnival betting

These are the horses that are currently in the betting for some of our big races and it is a good starting point for horses that you might like to include in your stable.  Odds are courtesy of Sportsbet.

EPSOM HANDICAP (3 October)

$8 Kermadec
$11 Pornichet, Royal Descent
$13 Sweynesse, Winx, Alpine Eagle
$15 Stratum Star, Noble Protector
$17 Hauraki, Hartnell, It's Somewhat, Hi World, Turn Me Loose, Lucia Valentina, Hooked

THE METROPOLITAN (3 October)

$8 Hartnell, Magic Hurricane
$11 Havana Cooler, Complacent, Hauraki, Silverball
$15 Orbec, The United States, Who Shot Thebarman, Preferment, Zee Zeely, Kapour, Gust of Wind
$17 Our Ivanhowe, Kirramosa, Junoob, Beaten Up, The Offer

SPRING CHAMPION STAKES (10 October)

$7 Wudang Mountain
$8 River Wild
$11 Press Statement, Rageese
$13 Shards, Snoopy
$15 Mawahibb, Jadeer, Sagaronne, Spiritos
$17 Kimberley Star, Mr Darcy, Sempre Libera, Gold Ambition

CAULFIELD GUINEAS (10 October)

$4.60 Press Statement
$5 Ready For Victory
$11 Exosphere
$17 Sovereign Nation, Rageese, Shards, Santa Ana Lane, Puritan

THOUSAND GUINEAS (10 October)

$5.50 Stay With Me, Padadena Girl
$11 Sagaronne, Alaskan Rose
$13 Speak Fondly
$15 Miss Gunpowder
$17 Sacred Eye

CAULFIELD CUP (17 October)

$13 Lucia Valentina, Fame Game, Hartnell
$15 Volkstok'n'barrell, Hokko Brave, Hauraki
$17 Mongolian Khan, Winx, Noble Protector, Pornichet
$21 Rising Romance, Preferment, Set Square, Alpine Eagle, Contributer, Max Dynamite, Complacent

COX PLATE (24 October)

$13 Pornichet, Highland Reel, Kermadec, Fawkner, Contributer
$15 Criterion, Hartnell
$17 The Cleaner
$21 Noble Protector, Winx, Arod, Volkstok'n'barrell

VRC DERBY (31 October)

$15 Zacada
$21 Press Statement, Kentucky Flyer
$26 Etymology, Manhattan Blues, Tarquin, Ready For Victory, Prince Of Brooklyn, River Wild

MELBOURNE CUP (3 November)

$10 Fame Game
$13 Max Dynamite
$17 Hokko Brave, Hartnell, Mongolian Khan
$21 Order Of St George, Snow Sky, Sky Hunter, Libran, Agent Murphy, Trip To Paris, Kingfisher

First Seal and Vancouver

The Anipal GeeGees Cup has seen its first casualties with two big guns, First Seal and Vancouver, being ruled out of the spring carnival this morning.

Welcome to the Anipal GeeGees Cup!

HOW TO PLAY

Playing Star Stable is pretty easy.  You start with a budget of $1 million and you pick ten horses to race throughout the competition.  Star Stable starts October 3 with Epsom Handicap day at Randwick in Sydney & continues until Emirates Stakes Day at Flemington in Melbourne on November 7.  A full list of meetings and races included in the competition can be found here or on the Star Stable home page.  Altogether there are two racedays from Sydney (both at Randwick) and nine racedays from Melbourne (Flemington, Caulfield, and Moonee Valley).

SELECTING YOUR STABLE

An initial list of horses can be found here but please note that this list is not comprehensive and newly-added horses can be found on the "Select Your Horses" page when you register.  The vast number of horses to choose from seems overwhelming at first but a good strategy is to concentrate on horses that are targeting big races like the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups, and the Cox Plate.

Full horse form can be found at Racing.com (includes Victorian/Melbourne replays), Racing NSW (New South Wales/Sydney replays) and Racing And Sports (international replays).

STABLE CHAMPION

Every meeting you have to choose a horse to be your stable champion.  This horse will earn you double points, similar to selecting a captain in Fantasy AFL.  You choose your stable champion by selecting the 'C' button and the horse's box will light up a gold colour.

JOCKEY & TRAINER

Each meeting you also have to choose a jockey and a trainer as part of your stable.  A trainer earns 10% of the prizemoney his or her horses earn, while a jockey gets 5%.  You will receive the prizemoney earned by your jockey and trainer regardless of whether you have their horse in your stable or not.

The leading trainers in Melbourne last season were Darren Weir, Peter Moody, David Hayes, Robert Smerdon and Mick Price.  The leading Melbourne jockeys were Damien Oliver, Craig Williams, Dwayne Dunn, Patrick Moloney and Brad Rawiller.

The leading Sydney trainers were Chris Waller, John O'Shea, Gai Waterhouse, Kris Lees and Paul Perry, while the jockeys were Hugh Bowman, James McDonald, Blake Shinn, Tommy Berry and Brenton Avdulla.

These names are good starting points for your jockey and trainer selections, and so are the jockeys and trainers who have strong chances in the big races at each meeting.

TRADES

During the competition you will have seven opportunities to make trades.  During each trade period you are able trade two horses, as well as your jockey and trainer.  You also have two wildcard trades where you can trade a third horse.  When you use your wildcard trades is entirely up to you, but I strongly suggesting saving one of your wildcards for Melbourne Cup day.

You have unlimited trades until the first lockout period and you can change your stable as many times as you wish.

SCORING

You earn virtual prizemoney every time one of your Star Stable horses earns prizemoney.  You get $1 of virtual prizemoney for every $1 your horses win.  Your stable champion will double that and get you $2 for every $1 he or she wins.  Your trainer will get 10% of prizemoney their horse earns, and a jockey 5%.

Every race is worth different prizemoney and sometimes a horse placing in a major race can earn you more money than a horse winning a minor race.

So let's take the Cox Plate as an example.  The prizemoney for this race is 1st $1,800,000, 2nd $440,000, 3rd $220,000, 4th $130,000, 5th $110,000, 6th $100,000, 7th $100,000, 8th $100,000.  Your trainer wins the race ($1,800,000 x 10% = $180,000), your jockey rides the second placegetter ($440,000 x 5% = $22,000), one of your horses finishes third ($220,000), while your stable champion is fourth ($130,000 x 2 = $260,000).  The total amount of prizemoney you would win in this example would be $682,000.

VALUE CHANGES

The price of each horse changes with how it performs during the competition.  Values only go up, they never go down.  How much the price of a horse goes up depends upon the class of the race.  The highest class of race in Australia is a Group 1 race, followed by a Group 2, then a Group 3, then a listed race.  The following table shows how much a horse will go up by with their performance in each particular class of event.

The class of each race is included under the "status" column in the list of races that I linked to earlier.

Jockeys and trainers are always free so they never go up in value.

So that is about it for now.  If you have any questions or suggestions for other topics you would like me to cover on this blog, please feel free to contact me on Twitter (@LeroyBlackCat).