Racing tipster Architect Tips picks out his Tote Ten to Follow stable for the upcoming season.
Architect Tips posts free daily racing tips on oddschecker and is currently 139 points in profit for 2021. Hear his expert analysis on the Tote Ten to Follow game below.
How does Tote Ten to Follow work?
Tote Ten to Follow is back for the 2021/22 National Hunt Season but this time it's bigger than ever. Many racing fans will fancy their chances of taking home a share of the guaranteed £100,000 on offer in the kitty, with the majority of the guaranteed pot going to the player whose stable can accumulate the most points across the tournament campaign. Each player will be required to assemble a stable of ten horses for as little as £5 or €5.50 per stable entry and, in addition, you can enter as many paid stables as you like. Alternatively, the free option game is available in the ‘free-to-play version’.
The competition will consist of 21 bonus races, many of the best contests of the Jumps calendar season, where extra points are on offer, including the returns on a £1 bet through the Tote and much more. If your selection does manage to score at a large price, this will obviously prove beneficial in your stable, alongside winning Grade One, Grade Two, Grade Three and Listed events. Not only that, but there is also a transfer window over a seven-day period at the start of March leading up to the Cheltenham Festival where players are able to make two substitutions on their team which could be either a tactical move, replace an injured horse, remove a member on your team that has underperformed or even just a change of heart in order to increase your stable’s chances in the prize fund.
To find out more details about the ultimate season-long fantasy game, including key information, TTF rules, game management, transfer window, new features including the ‘Angler’s Algo’, points scoring system, all of the bonus races and any other additional information, please find oddschecker’s very own guide here.
A lot of you will be familiar with the Ten to Follow format, but for newcomers, you will want as many of the best performers on your team who are sure to earn you the most points, preferably those who are going to pay their pay, with a few more pointers such as reliable horses who will run regularly and those who are likely to compete in the majority of the bonus events. With that in mind, it’s more than worthwhile to include horses that are going to be contesting higher-quality contests throughout the season and to gather some sort of an idea of who may compete in each division at the Cheltenham Festival which will certainly give you the best possible chance of scoring as many points as attainable over the course of the competition. If you're able to pinpoint some of the best horses in training that are likely to rattle off a sequence of victories this will certainly influence the points scored for your stable.
The competition has already opened to enter but all stables must be registered by 11am on November 13 and unlimited transfers can be applied freely until the deadline in which you're more than welcome to include our selections. Below you will find my thoroughly researched selections and insights for each horse for you to consider ahead of building your own stable and in the hope that I can point you in the direction of a strategy that will improve your chances in the famous competition. Best of luck.
Tote Ten to Follow Tips: Architect's Stable
Chacun Pour Soi
Trainer: Willie Mullins
Last Season’s Form: 11131
Having waited for so long to see him tackle the Queen Mother Champion Chase having been withdrawn on veterinary advice twelve months earlier due to a foot abscess, connections of Chacun Pour Soi’ were left disappointed that their heavily-supported favourite for the feature race on day-two could only finish second to Put The Kettle On. Maybe it was the hill that caught him out, maybe it wasn’t, perhaps they weren’t positive enough on him or otherwise, it could have just been an off-day as at the end of the day, they’re only horses, not machines.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing but Chacun Pour Soi put matters straight when in no uncertain terms when he showed all his class at Punchestown the following month. ultimately stamping his authority on the William Hill Champion Chase next-time-out under Paul Townend, beating Ryanair Chase winner, Allaho, and the winner of the Champion Chase, Put The Kettle On, in which Paul expressed after the race “that was the real Chacun”. The pair gave an exhibition of jumping and racing, where they had top-class horses out of their comfort zone from very early on as by the time they crossed the fourth-last, Chacun Pour Soi’s electric pace and sheer natural ability had begun to stretch them all out like washing. The further they went, the more he poured on the pressure and Susannah Ricci's nine-year-old proved why he was the highest-rated two-mile chaser with a scintillating display.
This year he’ll be up against the younger brigade in the shape of Shishkin and stablemate Energumene in the spectre that the three will clash at Cheltenham but it’s not hard to imagine this five-time Grade 1 winner proving tough to dethrone throughout the campaign, where he’s likely to take a similar route to last year and scalp a sequence of victories with many points to his name, while entries in the Tingle Creek (bonus race), Hilly Way and John Durkan just add an extra element to the options available for him. I cannot leave him out of the squad for this year, especially when reflecting on his demolition job against two Cheltenham Festival winners when last spotted which will live long in the memory so this top-class two-mile chaser, without hesitation, is first on the list of ten.
Appreciate It
Trainer: Willie Mullins
Last Season’s Form: 1111
Appreciate It is undoubtedly a specimen of a top-class novice chaser in the making so whatever he would be able to achieve over hurdles last season was always going to be a bonus for his future and his performance in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, despite it not being the highest-quality of renewals, was full of brilliance to say the least. His campaign was faultless from start to finish, where he won each of his four races, including three consecutive Grade One prizes in which he left the likes of Ballyadam and Galopin Des Champs trailing in his wake.
He lived up to his pre-race billing at Cheltenham in which he outclassed his seven rivals with a dominant display in the Festival curtain-raiser, winning by astonishing twenty-four lengths. It is a testament to this horse that he was able to win all of his starts last term in excellent style given he’s built to excel as a chaser and that could prove pivotal in the context of the two-mile novice chase division. I have no concern about his age and, with the possibility of following in the footsteps of Douvan, Un De Sceaux and Footpad this season, who all won three assignments prior to winning the Arkle for Willie Mullins, I expect this lad to follow suit and continue where he left off last season.
Bob Olinger
Trainer: Henry De Bromhead
Last Season’s Form: 2111
What we learnt last year in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham was how special Bob Olinger really is, not that we didn’t already know that but still, the manner in which he pulverised two Grade One winners in the shape of Bravemansgame and Gaillard Du Mesnil by over seven-lengths under Rachael Blackmore was clearly one of the standout performances of the entire meeting. Without a doubt, he has all the credentials and ammunition within his inventory to advance his form over fences, where the Grade One Drinmore Novice' Chase at Fairyhouse is likely to be an early-season target with the main aim being the Marsh Novices’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.
It remains to be seen what his optimum trip will be as not only has he shown plenty of stamina quality in abundance, but also definite speed given the burst of acceleration he displayed at Cheltenham when asked to seal the deal rounding the home-bend. The six-year-old has a lofty reputation to keep intact once again and he probably won’t be any value before Cheltenham, but this tournament is distinctly based on accumulating the most points and this exciting youngster should be able to assist in that department and will be hard to beat in whichever race he turns up in with even greater heights to scale than he did last year.
Energumene
Trainer: Willie Mullins
Last Season’s Form: 1111
There’s no better sight than seeing a two-mile top-class chaser in full flight and, although it was a shame he missed an highly-anticipated clash with Shishkin at Cheltenham last season, Energumene remains one of the most hair-raising chasers at the Willie Mullins’ stable and for the season ahead providing he stays injury-free.
The manner in which he crushed top-class opposition last season, including when he graduated at the highest-level twice. Firstly, in the Irish Arkle Novice Chase and then in the Ryanair Novice Chase at the Punchestown Festival in which you would have to think he’d have given Nicky Henderson’s star performer a threat. I am hopeful this jubilant front-runner will pick up plenty of points again this season as he looks destined to claim Grade One’s again on home-soil ahead of the Cheltenham Festival. It was a real shame we were never able to see stablemate Douvan - one of the greatest horses of the modern era never win the Champion Chase, but I think this lad has every possibility of achieving that next year and he can only get better with experience.
He reminds me a lot of the former mentioned, who had pace, plenty of gears, a potent turn of foot and a lot of swagger about him, similar to the selection, in which Energumene has dismantled all opponents in the races he’s came out victorious over obstacles by an aggregate of 70 lengths plus. He’s likely to be even busier this season and, with even better days ahead, he should be able to rack up a sequence of victories and will be hard to beat before his eagerly-awaited Champion Chase showdown with Shishkin at the Cheltenham Festival.
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Gaillard Du Mesnil
Trainer: Willie Mullins
Last Season’s Form: 21121
I am also putting forward the Willie Mullins-trained Gaillard Du Mesnil, who seems to be carrying fewer units than I originally expected so his inclusion in the ten to follow list is essential. It’s always a spectacle seeing horses improve over hurdles with the chasing further down the line sure to see them reach maximum capabilities and this beneficial team-member certainly fits the bill. He seemingly transformed into the horse connections had hoped for when winning by nine-lengths on his second run over hurdles before returning a workmanlike five-length winner of the Grade One Nathaniel Lacy & Partners Solicitors '50k Cheltenham Bonus For Stable Staff' Novice Hurdle in which he beat some very nice prospects and that high-class performance was backed up by the clock.
He improved again when losing no caste in defeat when second behind Bob Olinger in the Ballymore Novices' Hurdle despite racing keenly and stumbling slightly at the final hurdle. He then raised his game to a further degree on his final start of the campaign when claiming the Alanna Homes Champion Novice Hurdle by two-lengths. He was reported to have strengthened up very well over the summer according to Willie Mullins and given his very good jumping technique over hurdles, hopefully he can translate that to fences.
He’s probably going to want at least two-and-a-half miles over fences given how strongly he was at the business end of last season’s assignments so he’ll have plenty of options available throughout the entire season. He should be able to clean up a fair few points and, assuming he's currently fit and well, this two-time Grade One-winning hurdler is a fascinating dark horse for good middle-distance to three-mile chases and could easily make his presence felt this term against some of the high-profile contenders at the top level.
Honeysuckle
Trainer: Henry De Bromhead
Last Season’s Form: 1111
It’s hardly original but the other name on my team-sheet is last year’s top points scorer, Honeysuckle, heads into the season unbeaten in twelve races and proved she was the best two-miler around last term, stepping up to take on the boys in last season’s Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham and hacked up by six-lengths ahead of Sharjah to supplement two Irish Champion Hurdle wins before rounding off her unblemished season with victory in the Paddy Power Champion Hurdle.
I don’t think this year’s division is any stronger this season and given connections have stated that she’ll remain over hurdles, I can’t see anything troubling her at the present moment in time, especially with her main protagonists such as Appreciate It and Ferny Hollow going over fences. She is likely to follow a similar path to last season and return in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle at Fairyhouse in November before contesting the Irish Champion Hurdle and I am struggling to see what can beat her this term given she thumped most of these in the betting last season with plenty to spare.
The Champion Hurdle and Irish equivalent are bonus races, too, while other engagements such as the Hatton’s Grace is a Grade One for extra points and this phenomenal mare looks set for another stellar campaign where she is sure to accumulate a lot of points and has every chance of winning all of her assignments for the second consecutive year.
A Plus Tard
Trainer: Henry De Bromhead
Last Season’s Form: 213212
In the senior staying chase division, my vote goes to last year’s Gold Cup runner-up A Plus Tard, who took his form to another level when stepped up in trip last season, winning the Savills Chase at Leopardstown and finishing second to stablemate Minella Indo in the Gold Cup. He has proved a model of consistency throughout his career so far and he’ll be expected to accumulate plenty of points in various Grade One contests before aiming to go one better in the main event at this season’s Cheltenham Festival. His first point of call is set to be the Betfair Chase before he bids to defend his crown in the Savills Chase and then have a second attempt at jump racing’s blue riband event which is sure to be his main target later in the season.
However, other contests such as the Irish Gold Cup in February are among other options with all of the races mentioned above featuring in the bonus event category. If you're a regular reader of my daily columns, you’ll be aware that A Plus Tard was published as an ante-post selection for the first Grade One of the campaign, the Betfair Chase. The reason I haven’t included Minella Indo into the list is the fact that connections stated that he will have a much lighter campaign, whereas A Plus Tard will be kept a lot busier. Therefore, he is sure to have more opportunities to collect points during the season so he should again be a serious weapon in the high-class staying chases.
Envoi Allen
Trainer: Henry De Bromhead
Last Season’s Form: 111FP
It is quite remarkable to believe that Envoi Allen, one of the bankers at the Cheltenham Festival last year, was almost on everybody’s list until taking an early tumble in the Marsh Novices’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival and has practically been deserted ever since, especially by most after he was pulled up lame at Punchestown, after which he had surgery for a chipped joint. Before those couple of blips, he had won his first 11 races under rules in the manner of a superstar, including three times over fences, before things went wrong last spring. He’s still only seven, though, so is still young enough to scale those heights again with improvement to come in this sphere.
He is a dual Cheltenham Festival winner. has an incredible win strike-rate and bounced back to something near his best at Down Royal last-time-out, where he won by 22-lengths. On the face of it, his opposition were below the required standard to get you all that excited but that will have restored his confidence and his owners have always thought of him as a potential Gold Cup candidate in the future. With that in mind, I’d be hopeful we’ll see him tested over three-miles at some point this term and if that doesn’t work out, the Ryanair Chase looks a solid backup option and, with both of those events featuring in the bonus-race section, it would be foolish to write-off this four-time Grade One winner.
Next Destination
Trainer: Paul Nicholls
Last Season’s Form: 2112
He will probably need a little bit of improvement this term but Next Destination is a class act in his own right and connections not only did a brilliant job to get him on the track as he had been off for two and a half years, but to finish second in a Grade Two over hurdles, win a pair of Grade Two events, one of those on chase debut at Newbury before a trip to Warwick and then find only Galvin too strong on his final start at The Cheltenham Festival™ in the Sam Vestey National Hunt Challenge Cup Novices’ Chase. He might have won that event, too, if the ground was a bit more testing as the speed of the winner caught him out in the latter stages.
He is very fragile but jumps impeccably, stays forever and has a touch of class about him. The reason I have included him in my team is because the talented nine-year-old is expected to feature in the Betfair Chase but if the ground was on the quick side, he’d have an alternative entry in the Ladbrokes Trophy. That said, if he did manage to come out on top in the firstly-mentioned assignment, he would get an entry in the Gold Cup and, additionally, all three events are among the bonus-race list. As just mentioned, he’ll need improvement to claim one of those prizes, but it’s hard to fault his consistency with his form figures reading 142111312112 in his career at the time of writing and that trait will stand him good stead ahead of a campaign geared around staying chases.
Monmiral
Trainer: Paul Nicholls
Last Season’s Form: 1111
Monmiral burst onto the scene as being one of Paul Nicholls’ most exciting and talented youngsters last season in which he went from strength-to-strength where won on his debut in convincing fashion at Exeter before winning the Summit Hurdle at Doncaster and then another quality juvenile event at Haydock in February when beating a subsequent winner with plenty to spare. His connections took the sacrifice to bypass Cheltenham in order to take aim at the Grade One Doom Bar Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle and that paid off nicely when beating Triumph Hurdle runner-up Adagio by seven and a half lengths.
David Pipe’s inmate looked to be coming with a strong challenge until blundering away his chance at the final flight but as much as I accept many of his fans that jumped on the bandwagon by saying the outcome would have been different without that one’s incident, I firmly disagree as Paul Nicholls’ charge demonstrated a potent finishing-kick when asked for maximum effort and the response was immediate as he pulled clear of the runner-up with loads to spare. It’s appealing to hear that he’ll be aimed at the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle in November and he’ll probably be a short-priced favourite. For that race alone, he’s worth adding into the team given the maximum points on offer for this Grade One, while anything else along the way would be an added bonus including a possible trip for the Aintree Hurdle which should be another target later into the campaign, especially with the likelihood of a step up in trip at some point sure to unlock further improvement.
His trainer wrote this small piece on his stable tour quoting “The plan at the moment is to go for the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle and see where we stand and he will be ready for his life for that. His Gold Cup would probably be the Aintree Hurdle in the spring, but he might tell us differently”. Newcastle is a bit of a marker for us. In addition, the latter race, at the Aintree Festival, is a bonus race and he remains one of the most exciting hurdlers in training this term.
Architect Tips’ Tote Ten to Follow stable:
- Chacun Pour Soi
- Appreciate It
- Bob Olinger
- Energumene
- Gaillard Du Mesnil
- Honeysuckle
- A Plus Tard
- Envoi Allen
- Next Destination
- Monmiral
Substitution for transfer window...
Stattler
Trainer: Willie Mullins
Last Season’s Form: 31343
The substitution for my team-sheet is Stattler. He is still young and improving, and having won second-time-out over hurdles last term, he went onto placed in three consecutive Grade One events which included at both the Cheltenham and Punchestown Festivals. He led the field for a long way in his first Grade One assignment, the Nathaniel Lacy & Partners Solicitors '50k Cheltenham Bonus For Stable Staff Novice Hurdle, and briefly had Gaillard Du Mesnil in trouble approaching the final hurdle. He did well to finish third that day and then finish a fine fourth when sent off favourite in the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham, where he was one of the last horses off the bridle.
His final start of the campaign saw him finish third in the Grade One Irish Mirror Novice Hurdle and, while he’s only won once so far, it’s hard to fault his consistency. He looks an out-and-out stayer who will be going novice chasing this season and connections have already thought of him as a National Hunt Chase horse at Cheltenham. He reminds me a lot of year’s winner Galvin, who coincidentally, is also owned by these owners so it makes sense to see this six-year-old go down the same route, while some of those trials beforehand can be uncompetitive so he’ll no doubt have his fair share across the season.
While saying that, it’s not without the realms of possibility of him being slightly better than that grade so the options for him are far from limited. He’s currently at the top of the ante-post betting for the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival so that’s probably going to be his main target. The manner in which he impressed in the jumping department over hurdles suggests he’ll advance his form over fences, especially as he gains more experience over obstacles so I’ll be surprised if he can’t develop into a very high-class chaser for Willie Mullins this term and, although I found it very difficult leaving him out on my top ten, he looks a good substitute for my team, especially with the Cheltenham and Punchestown festivals being his main targets.
Enter your very own stable here, and best of luck!
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