ASCOT

1:20

Attacca (Nico De Boinville)

He and Persian Time are two of our best Novice Hurdlers, therefore it’s a shame they have to take each other on, but we have nowhere else to go so this is what we’re doing and Attacca has been very progressive all the way through. He was very good at Cheltenham over two miles when he made all but that was only because we know he wants two and a half so this trip will obviously suit and the ground should be ideal. He’s in the Ballymore but it’s highly unlikely he’ll go there and we’ll probably look at the EBF Final at Sandown and maybe Aintree depending on how he fares here.

Persian Time (Adrian Heskin)

We took him out of the Sidney Banks because the ground was too fast so I’m hoping there is plenty of ‘good to soft’ in the going here because he’s a big horse who wouldn’t want it rattling quick. He won at the course over two miles in November but will definitely be better at this trip and it is a shame he’s against Attacca, but at least after this I will have a better idea of who they are, where they are and what they are. 

1:50

Bold Endeavour (Nico De Boinville)

He’s done all we’ve asked of him and was good at Doncaster last time, but he has to have good ground so I’d like to think it will be perfect for him at Ascot. He did tend to jump to his right at Doncaster and while I don’t think it’s an issue, the switch to a right handed track may suit better and we’ll see where this race takes us. Whether he stays three miles we will find out shortly but he finished his race well last time so I rather think it’s worth exploring and whatever happens he’s a very nice person to have around the place. 

3:00

Glynn (Nico De Boinville)

I’d given him as much time as I dared before he returned to action at Newbury in December where he ran a hell of a race to finish third and I hope I’ve given him enough time coming back to not ‘bounce’.

He is extremely fragile so just getting him to the races is an achievement in itself but he proved he retains plenty of ability and he would have to come into this on his best form. 

3:35

Shishkin (Nico De Boinville)

This is obviously a very big day for him and we are stepping up in trip which is what I think he wants. Lots has already been said which doesn’t really need repeating over and over again so I’ll leave it to Shishkin to do the talking and see where we are at 3:45pm tomorrow! 

4:45

Between Waters (Nico De Boinville)

She’s a very nice mare who won her Point to Point well and is a gorgeous Coolmore representative. She can be slightly hyper, which is why she wears a hood, and I’m just hoping that she will go to sleep in the race and live with it all and learn from the experience. Her work is good and she has a bright future but she will come on a lot for this. 

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HAYDOCK

3:18

Mill Green (Daryl Jacob)

He qualified for the Pertemps Final when second in this race last year and put up two good efforts after that at both Cheltenham and Aintree. Through no fault of his own he’s had to have quite a bit of time off which is rather frustrating because this is rather late to be making his seasonal debut with Cheltenham just four weeks away, but it is what it is and he’s been moving and jumping very nicely. There are just nine runners and he needs to finish in the first four to qualify which he should hopefully be able to do. 

WINCANTON

3:12

First Street (James Bowen)

This is a very good race and you cannot rule out anything in the field because they are handicapped within pounds of each other and it will be a proper battle. However, this strikes me as a very good race for First Street on paper and he’ll like the track and ground. His form has been very consistent all the way through and he would have to be very much on the premises.