ROBIN - Haydock 2.40 Handicap Hurdle - Class 2 - 3 miles 1/2 furlong - 13 run - Soft / Heavy (light rain)

 

At the top end of the market here we have Astronomic view who is upped 8lbs for a facile Warwick win, clearly that's good form but Warwick is a bit of a specialists track, so I'm happy to take the favourite on without the win saver suggestion. Doughmore Boy is unexposed and a possible improver for Emma Lavelle but has no form yet in soft or heavy conditions. Judicial Law is also at his best so far in firmer underfoot conditions so has that niggling doubt too. Goshhowposh has an uneven form profile and current form suggests might be a better horse right handed. Shoeshie Boy has won in Class 4 and Class 3 races just getting the job done visually with nothing flashy and it's hard to know therefore where his ceiling is.

 

I'm therefore down to the middle of the betting column before finding horses with sufficent confidence to invest but the confidence is there and hopefully not misplaced.

 

I was very taken by the run of TANGANYIKA at Uttoxeter 2 weeks ago where it ran prominently and very well for a log way in bottomless Going.Beaten only by a Skelton hot pot and a big priced other Tipped horse in that race it showed proven ability in the underfoot conditions, clear aptitude for the trip and I think they will now know a lot more about ideal fractions the horse can run on this more galloping straighforward track. The only niggle is that is 14 days enough recovery time, we'll know soon enough and I'm happy to take the chance.

 

MY BOBBY DAZZLER was a runner up in heavy ground at Cheltenham in January staying on stoutly up the hill and although this track is very flat, it's also a long and demanding straight and stamina is a big asset. MARTHA BRAE is the Skelton runner in this race and you'd think its a prize fund that thy would be very keen to attack, whilst the overall form is solid and no more, the fact it runs and they enlist a 7lbs Claimer suggests to me that the horse will be asked to run to and through the line to get any bit of prize money it can. Thats something to bear in mind the closer the Yard gets to winning the Trainers Title as a few grand (or even a few hundred for a third at Plumpton on a wet Monday may make all the difference).

 

Tips (1) Tanganyika / (2s) My Bobby Dazzler / (3s) Martha Brae