Three free tips from Steve Ryder on Saturday.
Tip 1: 14:20 Cheltenham- The Short Go 9/2 (0.5pt ew)
Darragh O’Keefe and Henry De Bromhead have combined to win this race for the past two seasons and they should hold strong claims this year with THE SHORT GO (best priced at 9/2). The eight-year-old finished runner-up in this race last season when only beaten 1 ¼ lengths off a mark of 126 and although he now runs off a 6lb higher mark, he will prove hard to beat if his jumping holds up.
The Short Go finished 5th in the Ultima Handicap Chase last season off this mark despite racing keenly and making a few mistakes. The stable have started the season in good form with a 25% strike rate in the past two weeks and had Jasko Des Dames finish 2nd here yesterday.
Tip 2: 15:50 Doncaster - Valvano 7/2 (1pt)
This time last year VALVANO (best priced at 7/2) was sent off favourite for the November Handicap over 1m4f here where he ran well to finish 5th off a mark of 97 on soft ground. This season has been slightly disappointing but he showed much better from dropped down to 1m1f last time at Yarmouth when 3rd beaten only 1 ¾ lengths off a mark of 94.
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The handicapper has raised Valvano 2lbs for that which is fair and I do think there may be some more improvement to come from a further drop in trip to a mile. He still raced keenly last time and didn’t get the clearest of runs towards the finish. He proved last year that he handles these conditions and is expected to record only the second victory of his career.
Tip 3: 17:00 Doncaster - Dwindling Funds 9/2 (0.5pt ew)
The Jim Goldie trained DWINDLING FUNDS (best priced at 9/2) has won six of his previous eight starts with the previous two coming on soft and heavy ground. The four-year-old has progressed from a mark of 51 to 73 in that time but put in a huge career best last time when winning by 3 ¼ lengths at Ayr.
Paul Mulrennan, who has been on board for three of those victories, retains the ride and Dwindling Funds looks hard to beat despite now stepping up in class.
