There are five placepot opportunities taking place today, with, Chepstow, Ludlow, Wolverhampton and Thurles this afternoon, before Chelmsford City’s all-weather card this evening.
It was tough to decide where to opt for this afternoon, but after much deliberation, Chepstow is where we head for our placepot picks. There are decent field sizes, and competitive action through the card, so it should provide an interesting challenge!
Leg One: Goldray
The lightly-raced nine-year-old Goldray is set for just her third start, and she looks the one to be on in the opener, after outrunning her odds to give a well-regarded mare plenty to think about at Bangor.
The pair pulled well clear of the remainder, and given it was her first run for 342-days, she is sure to come on for the effort. It looks an open affair, but she won’t need to find too much improvement to go close and with plenty more to come, she looks sure to make the frame.
Leg Two: Its a Long Road
It’s a Long Road is taken to land a hat-trick at Chepstown this afternoon, after he arrives on the back of two impressive successes in handicap company. The step into handicaps has brought the best out of the seven-year-old and he could well prove better than his mark as he lines up in leg two.
Kieron Edgar takes a handy five-pound off his back and as he lines up against a series of rather exposed rivals, he seems the logical choice. He is one of only two horses in the race to win over today’s distance and he can put that to good use by guiding us through to leg three.
Leg Three: Tanit River
As much as we would love to find each-way plays in every race, sometimes it just makes sense to go with the favourite – and the well-backed Tanit River gets the nod for us in leg three. He hadn’t shown any real spark in his first four starts, but he had been keeping eye-catching company, so his impressive effort at Warwick may not have come as a total surprise to many.
Despite a couple of jumping errors, he oozes class as he made smooth headway past a decent field, to pull away clear on the flat. He is ten-pound well-in this afternoon the back of this performance, and his rider, Alan Johns, takes a bonus seven-pound off his back. The fact that he escapes a penalty for his latest effort ensures he gets the nod this afternoon and it looks an ideal opportunity for him to go close yet again.
Leg Four: Buchaill Alainn
Jamie Moore was hard at work on Buchaill Alainn for the entire duration of their three-mile and one furlong spin at Ffos Las last month – yet the fact he made up so much ground and stuck on gamely to finish third suggests it may not be worth giving ip on the eight-year-old just yet.
He has an abundance of stamina and although he often races lazily, the return to a sounder surface should benefit Peter Bowen’s charge. Sean Bowen is quickly making a name for himself among the racing world, and the five-pound claimer can enhance his growing reputation on-board the seven-year-old, who should benefit from a first time tongue-tie.
Leg Five: Kilmurvy
There was plenty of money around for Kilmurvy on his last start, and he appeared to do all of his best work at the end of his race that day. He finished a staying-on fourth behind the well-respected Master Malt and Nick Scholfield is sure to make more use of the gelding this afternoon.
He has won over three miles before, so the trip is sure to suit and with plenty of question marks over his main rivals – he looks set to score at their expense. The fact that Ifyouthinkso is a non-runner is a shame, as it takes it down to seven runners, meaning we have to make the first two, but still, Kilmurvy gets the nod and hopefully he will be able to see us through to the final leg.
Leg Six: Bobs Law
If we have made it through to the finale unscathed, all eyes will be on Bobs Law, who carries our hopes in the Hunters’ Chase. He showed his battling spirit, when getting up by a head from the well-regarded Universal Soldier last month, as the pair pulled 76 lengths clear of the third.
He made all that day and with the tongue-tie added to the cheekpieces, he should be able to settle a little easier in front. He looks as though he is a safer alternative to often inconsistent favourite, Pentiffic, and it with conditions in his favour, Mickey Bowen’s gelding should be able to mount a strong challenge.