and one more for Cheltenham

Trainer Sandy Thomson has long had a knack of improving experienced horses that are moved to his yard. A combination of the healthy Scottish Borders air and a new regime have done wonders for several veteran chasers over the years, including Harry The Viking, Yorkhill and Dingo Dollar. The secret? ‘Individual care. It’s all about trying to work out as quickly as possible what each horse wants. Every horse is different,’ the genial Thomson told me last year.

This season a stay at Thomson’s yard has led to a marked improvement in the form of BENSON, a hurdler with plenty of miles on the clock when connections paid just £7,000 for him as a seven-year-old gelding last year. Since then Benson has run four times for Thomson, coming third twice and winning his last race at Musselburgh on New Year’s Day by 11 lengths. Those top runs saw his handicap rating go up from 123 when he arrived at the yard to 134 today.

Thomson revealed in a recent stable tour that Benson was bought with the hope that he might run well in the bet365 Morebattle Hurdle at Kelso – and that is indeed where he runs tomorrow afternoon. His recent runs suggest that Benson is better these days over a distance of two and a half miles, rather than tomorrow’s trip of just two miles. However, the 16-strong field has plenty of front runners and a fast-run two-mile contest should be fine for the horse.

The dream for connections is that Benson wins tomorrow and therefore sets himself up for a £100,000 bonus which is being offered to any horse that is victorious in both the Morebattle Hurdle and a race at the forthcoming Cheltenham Festival.

There are plenty of runners with a chance of landing tomorrow’s Kelso feature race (1.50 p.m.) but I feel Emmet Mullins’s ‘plot horse’ Mctigue is too short in the betting. As always, I am looking for value, so back Benson each way with bet365, the only bookie going 16-1 with five places at the time of writing. SkyBet is offering six places on the race but with odds of only 12-1.

Admittedly the form of the Thomson yard – 46 days without a winner – is a concern so proceed with caution. However, I am hoping Benson can outrun his odds this weekend and provide me/us with some punting money for the Cheltenham Festival in just 11 days’ time.

On the subject of the Festival, this week I looked back at the results of the nine handicaps last year and saw that they were won by horses at 50-1, 40-1, 28-1, 25-1, 22-1, 12-1, 10-1, 10-1 and 11-4. So don’t get sucked into thinking that the handicaps are routinely mopped up by fancied horses from the top yards from Ireland including the Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott and Henry de Bromhead stables.

Last year, writing a different tipping blog, I am pleased to say that I put up Global Citizen at 50-1 for the Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase and he duly obliged for myself and followers of my tips, winning fairly comfortably at a starting price of 28-1.

Ben Pauling’s gelding will try to repeat the feat on 15 March and I feel a bit guilty about deserting him. But this time around I am sweet on the chances of another outsider, SAINT SEGAL, from the Devon yard of Jane Williams.

The trainer hoped earlier in the season that the apple of her eye might be up to running in the Grade 1 Sporting Life Arkle Novices’ Chase on the opening day of the Festival but, in the end, she has set her sights lower, opting for the two-mile handicap instead.

Saint Segal landed two novice chases over the minimum trip this season before running second in a Doncaster handicap on 27 January. He goes to the Grand Annual off a lovely rating of just 139. Back him each way at 20-1 with bet365, five places, without the Non Runner No Bet (NRNB) concession. This race is his only Festival entry and he will surely line up in it provided he avoids a setback.

I know that a lot of astute punters read this weekly column so, as a one-off, please use the comment section to reveal your best antepost bet of the Festival and justify briefly why it is a good wager.

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Pending bets:

1 point each way Benson at 16-1 in the Morebattle Hurdle, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way Nassalam at 20-1 NRNB for the Ultima Handicap Chases, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way I Like To Move It at 20-1 for the Unibet Champion Hurdle, 1/5 odds, three places.

1 point each way Mister Coffey at 25-1 for the National Hunt Chase, paying 1/5 odds, three places.

1 point each way Camprond at 20-1 NRNB for the Coral Cup, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way French Dynamite at 14-1 NRNB for the Ryanair Chase, paying 1/5 odds, three places.

1 point each way Saint Segal at 20-1 for the Grand Annual, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way Elixir de Nutz at 20-1 NRNB for the Plate Handicap Chase, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way Gin Coco at 14-1 NRNB for the County Hurdle, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way Hewick at 20-1 NRNB for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, paying 1/5 odds, three places.

1 point each way Royal Pagaille at 50-1 NRNB for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, paying 1/5 odds, three places.

1 point each way Might I at 10-1 NRNB for the Martin Pipe Hurdle, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way Corach Rambler at 20-1 in the Aintree Grand National, paying 1/4 odds, four places.

1 point each way Lifetime Ambition at 33-1in the Aintree Grand National, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

1 point each way Any Second Now at 20-1 in the Aintree Grand National, paying 1/5 odds, five places.

Settled:

1 point each way Hill Sixteen in the Becher Chase at 11-1, paying 1/5 odds, six places. Unplaced (7th). – 2 points.

2 points win Annsam at 8-1 for the Howden Silver Cup. Cancelled meeting. Stake returned.

1 point each way Eldorado Allen at 20-1 in the King George VI Chase, paying 1/5 odds, 3 places. Unplaced (4th).  – 2 points.

1 point each way The Big Breakaway in 20-1 for the Welsh Grand National at 20-1, paying 1/5 odds, five places. 2nd. + 3 points.

1 point each way The Big Dog at 12-1 in the Welsh Grand National, paying 1/4 odds, four places. 3rd. + 2 points.

1 point each way Grumpy Charley at 12-1 in the Newbury 2.25 p.m. paying 1/5 odds, five places. 1st + 16.4 points.

2 points win Midnight River at 5-1 for the Cheltenham 1.55 p.m., with Skybet. 1st. + 10 points.

1 point each way Coconut Splash at 12-1 in the Cheltenham 1.55, with William Hill, paying 1/5 odds, six places. Unplaced (P). – 2 points.

1 point each way Sir Ivan at 20-1 in the Sandown 3 p.m., paying 1/5 odds, five places. Unplaced. – 2 points.

1 point each way Lord du Mesnil at 8-1 in the Warwick 3 p.m. race, paying 1/5 odds, five places. Unplaced. – 2 points.

1 point each way Dubrovnik Harry at 8-1 in the Kempton 2.40 p.m. race, paying 1/5 odds, seven places. Unplaced. – 2 points.

1 point each way Mister Coffey at 15/2 for the Doncaster 3.15 p.m., 1/5 odds, five places. Non Runner. Stake returned.

1 point each way Back On The Lash at 7/1 for the Cheltenham 12.40 p.m., 1/5 odds, five places. 1st. + 8.4 points

1 point each way Empire Steel at 12-1 in the Sandown 3.30 p.m., paying 1/5 odds, five places. Unplaced. – 2 points.

1 point each Small Present at 25-1 for the Grand National Trial (Haydock 2.40 p.m.) paying 1/4 odds, four places. Unplaced – 2 points.

1 point each way Homme Public at 9-1 for Ascot 3 p.m., paying 1/5 odds, four places. Unplaced. – 2 points.

1 point each way Party Business at 20-1 NRNB for the Pertemps Network Hurdle Final, paying 1/5 odds, five places. Non Runner. Stake returned.

2022-3 jumps season, running total + 21.8 points.

My gambling record for the seven years: I have made a profit in 13 of the past 14 seasons to recommended bets. To a one-point level stake over this period, the profit of has been just over 469 points. All bets are either one-point each way or two-points win (a ‘point’is your chosen regular stake).