William Hill offer six places for each-way punters in Sandown’s season finale card opener, a handicap hurdle for novices that we won a few years ago with Wolf Of Windlesham.
Paul Nicholls trains the favourite Getaway Trump, victorious at Ayr recently, but I like his second string BIRDS OF PREY who has a light weight and seems to be going the right way.
He only does what he has to in front which can be a fine asset when trying to maintain a low handicap mark when winning, and with a 5lb claimer he should be very competitive.
I’m backing two in this race and like the look of Dan Skelton’s unexposed HUMBLE HERO.
He has a lovely profile for a race like this and is in the hands of a trainer who excels at laying horses out for these assignments.
I can’t fault his jumping and he won last time out very easily, travelling like a good horse, and a 5lb hike in the ratings is not enough to put me off when we can back him each-way at 6/1.
In-form horses generally fill the places when taking a rise in weights, so he looks a very solid bet.
1pt each-way Humble Hero @6/1, 13:50 Sandown, Saturday (1-6, 1/5 with WillHill)
1pt each-way Birds Of Prey @10/1, 13:50 Sandown, Saturday (1-6, 1/5 with WillHill)
BLACK CORTON looks a fairly obvious bet in the Oaksey Chase at Sandown, now main market rival Definitly Red has been taken out on account of the ground.
He’s not been bad this season as he’s generally come second in all his starts except when pulling up in bad ground in the Ladbrokes Trophy, and there’s nothing intimidating about this grade.
I don’t see much else in the race with the Graded form besides Charbel, so I suspect it will play out between them yet I can’t have Charbel as favourite.
He’s just about the polar opposite of a ‘solid’ betting option, while Black Corton is a bigger price and far more consistent.
1pt win Black Corton @3/1, 14:25 Sandown, Saturday
Later on in the card I’m taking a chance on the unreliable ON THE BLIND SIDE who has floundered over fences this season but has good hurdles form to his name and will appreciate the good ground.
He’s got pace and the return to hurdles might see him regain his confidence – if so he’s got to have a huge chance receiving weight from many of the market principles.
Black Op is the main danger if taking to the good ground as this trip should be perfect for him, but he’s been a long way short of the form he showed last season.
1pt win On The Blind Side @100/30, 16:10 Sandown, Saturday
Leave a comment