Andy Holding's Thursday Racing Tips

TUMBLING DICE (best price 3-1) proved too strong for the extremely well fancied Stop on Soph over today’s C&D last time out and with the assessor seemingly not waking up to fact he still looks fairly well treated, Sue Smith’s gelding is strongly fancied to take advantage of that lenient approach.

Only modest at best over hurdles, the son of Lucarno didn’t exactly set the world on fire on his first two starts over fences, but following an altogether more promising effort at Newcastle when upped in trip, he finally delivered the goods next time on his first visit to today’s chase track. Racing in the first-time cheekpieces 12 days ago, the seven-year-old raced a little more generously than he had done on several previous occasions and even though he looked in trouble as the short-priced favourite swept by him leaving the back straight, by the time he’d reached the line, he was well on top. Based on what we witnessed at the Yorkshire venue, he clearly is a strong stayer at the trip, so providing he can keep in touch with the main players through the first two miles of the journey, he should have every chance of being a major threat at the business end. Melenanix, whose form ties in with Tumbling Dice, on a line through Spot On Soph, rates the main danger.

OASIS IRLANDES (NAP) (best price 15-8) showed more than his fair share of promise on debut at Wolverhampton a week ago and with the form already given a timely boost with the runner-up, Income, scoring in tidy fashion yesterday, Amy Murphy’s colt can follow along a similar path.

Even though the pace was quite generous at the Dunstall Park venue, the son of Gutaifan still had a tendency to race a little keenly in the early stages, but given it was his first racecourse experience, it would be hard to castigate him too much on that score. Once he’d settled down and got racing on a more even keel, however, he’d worked himself into a position whereby he looked quite dangerous off the home bend and although he couldn’t quite muster up the sort of finishing effort that made too many inroads to the first three down the straight, he still impressed with the way he stuck manfully to the task at hand. Likely to be all the wiser for that initial experience, he has already run a number that suggests a race of today’s nature is well within range, so providing he doesn’t do anything stupid, he really ought to be going close to backing up that viewpoint.

MORLAIX (best price 4-1) left the impression he may have beaten hotpot Desert Emperor if the race had developed a little more in his favour last time out and with a switch to track where he’s already enjoyed quite a bit of success in the past seen as a big positive, David Simcock’s gelding rates the percentage call at the prices in quite a trappy affair.

Returning to action after a 186-day break, the son of Mayson was up against a horse in terrific shape at the time, but despite being sent off an unconsidered 10-1 chance in a race of just four runners, he came out of the contest with the most credit. Off modest fractions, it just took him a while to engage his huge frame into top gear, but from being three lengths down with a furlong to race, he managed to whittle the losing margin down to a neck at the line. Although there’s always a danger of there being a lack of pace in a small field such as tonight’s, hopefully State Secretary well take them along at a reasonable gallop at the very least and providing he’s given sufficient time to get up a head of steam, the five-year-old will prove a major threat to all in the latter stages.