Stark weather forecast

The 429th edition of the Wayward Lad blog.

There were no recommended selections yesterday, but I did say the couple of novice chasers that Paul Nicholl's sent out on their racecourse debuts both looked capable of winning. As it happened, SANCTUAIRE did win (at an SP of 13/8) but MERRRION SQUARE didn't. As such, a 1pt levels stakes win wager onboth would have result in a tiny profit, but a profit none-the-less.  SANCTUAIRE is a bit of a monkey as he went-off so quick yesterday several "scribes" on twitter reckoned he may be bolting, but he won the race in what looked to be a canter. Connections suggested he may go to the Festival and while in my opinion he will be outclassed in the Arkle (Paul Nicholl's has Al Ferof) I would be interested in him in whatever else he might contest there. Finally, yesterday I titled the blog "Walsh 48% strikerate for Nicholls at Taunton" and Ruby Walsh rode 3 winners for Paul Nicholl's there yesterday: Dildar @ 8/15, Sanctuaire @ 13/8, Ted Spread @ 5/4, and his 4th ride Frankie Figg was unplaced. For punters who enjoy a multiple bet, a 1pt win yankee on those 4 runners (11pts staked) would have returned an 11.44pt profit.

A couple of today's meetings – those at Leicester and Ludlow – have been lost to the weather, and we only have jumps racing at Newcastle.  I don't like Newcastle at the best of times and I'm not scrabbling around there looking for a wager today. With the weather likely to take a tight grip over the coming few days, I am taking a look at the Festival meeting and will use the time to start preparations for a Festival Bulletin.

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No selections for today's racing.

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