Tweet

racing news / captain's blog /

Captain's Blog - 12th November 2010

Am I Blue rewarded each way support here on the blog when finishing second at 7/1 yesterday. That sets us up nicely for the Open meeting at Cheltenham which starts today and will be live on . I will be in the booth today helping the guys out with the coverage and it will be good to be part of the team. Punting at Cheltenham is never easy, but so often horses with previous good form at the track come up trumps. I think it is also a difficult track to ride which means the best jockeys tend to come to the fore. As far as I am concerned the best jockey is Ruby Walsh but unfortunately he has a broken leg which is a blow not only to Paul Nicholls but also to those of us who like to watch horses being ridden properly. Over the three days though we are bound to see some class performances from Horses and Jockeys and also get a few preliminary pointers to the Festival in March.

Cue Card
© racing-images.co.uk

Cue Card is a horse many are looking forward to seeing again. He won the Champion Bumper and impressed on his first start over hurdles. He faces a much bigger task this afternoon and this will be an important learning curve for this exciting novice. The one chink in his armour at the moment is his exuberance. He can be keen and at times wants to do too much early on in a race. If he is to become top class over hurdles he must settle down. I will be watching him rather than backing or laying him today as it is hard to predict how he will take to hurdling in much better company. The drop back in trip to two miles will certainly be a bonus for him as will the possibility of there being a strong gallop which will help him settle and all being well he will produce a decent performance.

I am late on parade today because I managed to sleep through the alarm which is unheard of for me. I must have needed the kip! What this late start means is that I am not sure I will be able to get to the Gym before heading to work. I was planning to go for a long run, but now I am simply running out of time. I guess I could just go for a quick spin on the running machine and then get to the office. I will decide shortly, in the meantime I would suggest that Halsion Chancer is a decent each way wager at Lingfield today. The John Best trained horse is well handicapped and looked as if he was returning to form last time up. He will be ridden patiently by George Baker which should suit and should give us a good run for our money.

Have a good day.

Today's Selection

3.15 Lingfield – Halsion Chancer (each way 9/2 Sky Bet )