Galway Festival Betting Tips Today: Day 4 Most Backed Bets

Meriden

Meriden looks the type still capable of finding more, and stall 2 gives her every chance to prove it.

The form here does the talking: five straight wins, a rocket-ship rise of 40lb up the ratings along the way, and each victory has come with authority rather than a scramble. Most recently she landed a valuable Listed prize at Killarney worth six figures, seeing off fillies' handicap company in style over this same trip, and she's answered every question asked of her at every step up so far.

Now rated 97 after that latest progressive leap, there's an obvious argument she's simply been placed to keep exploiting her class advantage - and with the manner of these wins suggesting there's still fuel in the tank, there's no reason the pattern has to stop here. A favourable draw in stall 2 means she won't have to work any harder than necessary to get her campaign back on track.

Shadow Paddy

Six wins from 13 starts overall, but it's the switch to fences that's really sparked him into life - two starts over the bigger obstacles, two facile victories, first by 12 lengths at Limerick and then by 4 at Killarney just 13 days ago. Winning four of his last five starts in this form, he's a horse clearly relishing this discipline and improving fast.

Stepping up to Grade 3 company does ask a more searching question, but everything about the manner of those wins - visually impressive, doing it with authority rather than grinding out narrow margins - suggests he has the raw scope to take it in his stride. With connections seemingly building towards a test of exactly this nature and conditions on good ground that should suit, there's plenty to like about his claims of making it three from three over fences.

Ndaawi

Second past the post in this contest for the last two years running - promoted to the winner last year after suffering interference - his form figures here read like a horse with an obvious affinity for Galway. This time he shoulders 7lb more than his winning weight from 12 months ago, but a 5lb claimer takes a healthy chunk back off, leaving him just 2lb worse off than last year's successful mark for Gordon Elliott.

The prep has ticked every box too. He bounced back from a taxing campaign in Grade 1 and valuable handicap company at Cheltenham to win a Bar 1 Hurdle at Cork, accounting for Absurde by 3¼ lengths without needing to be at his very best, then kept the engine ticking over with a win in a qualified riders' race on the flat at Listowel in late May. That's a horse arriving with both form and fitness in the bank.

With a record at this track reading 2-1 in this very race, he's proven he handles what Galway asks of him better than most.