Morning guys, This morning i will lose my new thread virginity and start it off. Nothing exciting to tip up, but i do like the lood of THEMILANHORSE 4.30 Ludlow @15/8 with bill hills. Won very well lto and believe it will follow up and give the board a nice winner although not at a price that can compare to several of the regular posters on here (you all know who you are, without me listing you all lol). good luck if you play
8.40 Kempton Ducal 9/2 Well backed on debut for current yard back December over 7f to be sent off favourite. He had try travel very wide that day and the trainer said afterwards that as a result he ran out of gas. He was beaten by 2.25L that day and gets in here off the same mark of 75. Form of that race has worked out nicely with the winner getting narrowly beaten twice off 4lb and 7lb higher marks and the 3rd Lastkingofscotland has won since off a 4lb higher mark and reopposes today on 8lb worse terms. Ducal is pretty unexposed with only 8 starts to date and I will be beyond shocked if his current mark is as high as he will get in his career. With trainer Mike Murphy having a winner recently and a much better draw in stall 3, I think 2 months break he's had (Murphy said he needs time between races) will freshen him right up and I think he'll go extremely close with a free run
Quite like the look of Don McCain's Call Back in the opener at Ludlow. He has very good bumper form having beaten a Ferguson hotpot at Newcastle before finishing a fine 5th in that good Cheltenham bumper on New Year's Day. Stable in corking form and they will have a line to the Henderson horse via their horse Ebanour who beat him last time out. A quick double for McCain may be on the cards with Bunclody looking likely in the 2nd. In the Forbra Gold Challenge Cup at 4.00 Fairoak Lad usually goes well after a break and doesn't look overly burdened off 130. Stable finally getting amongst the winners again after a few lean weeks and he looks capable of taking this. To complete a nice yankee I'll put up the very short but very interesting Henderson runner Tistory in the bumper. Best of luck everyone
Interesting that the Timform comments have disappeared from the Oddschecker site. Still there on ATR. Significant money for Ducal this morning ROTO. I like Gary O'Brien's pick, Owenacurra Milan in the 4.55 at the Thurles and don't think the 4/1 will be available long.
I see that old boy Sir Robert Ogden is about to sell off all his remaining NH stock (will though retain all his Flat horses) in a dispersal sale. Mr Henderson, of course, has got a few of his and I wonder who will buy the likes of Giorgio Quercus and Problema Tic???
Morning all really sad news about PC David Rathband who was found dead on Wednesday night at his home aged 44. Sadly it sounds like suicide. Shot and blinded by Raoul Moat who I hope rots in hell. And to think some people who never even knew Moat went to his funeral to celebrate his life and praised him for shooting David Rathband- sick people.
Hats and heels is too big at 7/1 in the decent Novice Hurdle at Thurles getting all that weight. Small win bet.
Good afty all... Just a few that i will play on today... All at Ludlow... 3.30 - Vivarini, 4/1 4.00 - Marafeq, 7/2 4.30 - Themilanhorse, 7/4 Singles n Doubles... Good luck to all who do indeed play today...
I see that the ‘Sporting Life’ are reporting that old Alan King still hasn’t made up his mind re Medermit’s Festival aim and he says ‘Each day I wake up with a different idea as to where he should run’. Put him in the CGC for heaven’s sake, man.
I've taken odds of 34-1 on Mr King to be top of the old trainer tree at Cheltenham so wherever Medermit goes I'll be cheering him on (along with all the other Barbury Castle horses)
Oddy: My mate took 25s with Laddies yesterday (best he could find) and you both have a good chance, shame they wont go EW though :-( Choc is without doubt one of the top three jocks around Cheltenham, he rides as well as any IMO
Surely Mullins is going to be top trainer? With the XCountry on top of his other big hopes he seems to have 3 or 4 races at his mercy before we even look at his handicappers/outsiders. I can't be having King as top trainer this year, but his price looks to be very fair, and I would love him to prove me wrong after he has been noted as being one who (in the words of BC) is "turning to the flat game".
Surely Saludos should be up to beating a set of fairly mediocre rivals in the 2.25 at Thurles shouldn't he? Any glaring reasons to stay away?
Oddy, old Alan King's team is looking stronger by the day and that 34/1 could just be the best value bet since Pegasus started odds-against on his debut. If Montbazon wins the first its just possible that King could lead the trainers table early and stay there.
Was still available last night at my online bookies - www.racebets.com Not the greatest bookies for value but for me, living in Germany, they are great because I can watch every single race on their live streams, the only pre-condition being that I bet a minimum of €20 every 2 weeks (and who doesn't do that? )
4.40 Taunton MARIGOLDS WAY 33/1 EW, I was on her LTO, when she ran a decent enough race FTO Hunter Chasing and for her new stable since, since leaving the Honeyball stable also gets the ground today that should suit her best. One to follow who may be winning or placing at a decent price soon and today could be that day.