The British weather is playing havoc with running plans at the moment and there is clearly a lot of dissatisfaction at the 48-hour declaration system. Trainers have been moaning all season at having to declare horses without knowing the going. I don’t know the stats but there do seem to be an awful lot of non-runners lately. Both of Thursday’s selections were pulled out but I suppose that is better than getting beaten on unfavourable ground.
At the time of writing the going is reported to be good to soft at Ascot for Friday’s card. It has been raining cats and dogs up here in Scotland but presumably it is not so bad down south. Hopefully the going will be no worse than soft but it is probably enough to avoid those horses known to prefer top of the ground.
The feature race on Friday is the Listed Noel Murless Stakes and I’m going for York winner Dark Crusader to strike again here. He was confidently ridden on the Knavesmire and came through readily in the closing stages to win the valuable Melrose Stakes. He will appreciate any rain that falls and can beat the disappointing Greatwood.
Betting in six furlong handicaps is always a bit of a lottery but I’m tempted by the lightly-raced Blessington tomorrow. He raced only twice last season, winning well at Goodwood in a race that included Gatewood. I’m not sure why he has been off for so long and it is probably best not to know. John Gosden isn’t the most optimistic of souls when it comes to talking up his horses and he’d probably give this one little chance. Even so, at around 8-1 it could be worth taking a chance.
The last race is a bit of a conundrum. I put Gold Hunter into my notebook after an unlucky run at Doncaster but I’m not convinced that he wants it soft. He’s by Invincible Spirit and the feeling is that they don’t really like it deep. I’m also keen to have Brownsea Brink on my side because he seems like one of those horses that just does enough. He beat a huge field to win at Newmarket last time and 8-1 looks too big a price to ignore.
Young Oisin Murphy is all the rage after his remarkable four-timer on Ayr Gold Cup day. Andrew Balding has snapped him up to ride easy Kempton scorer Ballinderry Boy tomorrow in the Gordon Carter Handicap and the tip could be worth taking. The first two drew well clear in that race with the runner-up finishing second at Haydock in a decent race subsequently.
Blessington (3.05) 8-1 Ladbrokes
Dark Crusader (3.40) 7-2 Coral
Ballinderry Boy (4.15) 4-1 Coral
Brownsea Brink (4.50) 8-1 Coral
Betfair:
Bet on Henrik Stenson to become the BMW PGA Championship Winner.
Paddypower:
Back Australia to take the Ashes home with them.
Betway:
Back Rafael Nadal to become the Mens French Open Winner.
Coral:
Back One For Arthur to win the Grand National.
Bet365:
Back Mexico to win the Confederations Cup.
