Hi there! The first thing to say is that I expect Cheltenham’s clerk of the course Simon Claisse is sleeping more easily after what must have been a very stressful few weeks leading up to the Festival. There is obviously … Read More »

Sometimes the difference between the way journalists and bookmakers look at things can be quite amusing. Wigan have been beating Premier League teams, including Manchester City, on their way to the FA Cup quarter-finals and the newspapers can see another … Read More »

It seems that Man Of Plenty is destined to miss out in big handicap hurdles and it was particularly galling to see him finish fifth in the Imperial Cup after securing some 42/1 a win and 7/1 a place on … Read More »

Hi there! Nicky Henderson reported that he was ‘very pleasantly surprised’ with the condition of the track when he took his traditional tour of the course this morning. Although the ground is officially described as soft, with heavy patches, Henderson … Read More »

Football has its problems, the glut of money at the top end being a pretty fair starting point, but as long as it can surprise us we remain hooked. Even now I don’t know how Tottenham managed to lose to … Read More »

I was pleased with Encore D’Or last week; indeed, his victory and that of Abe Lincoln, also at Lingfield, showed how profitable it can be to follow Ryan Moore when he is engaged for rides outside the Ballydoyle and Sir … Read More »

Hi there! The big news broke this evening that Sizing John would not be able to defend his crown in next week’s Gold Cup. After Robbie Power rode the horse in exercise this morning he reported that something “wasn’t right” … Read More »

Hi there! The major talking point at the moment relates to the weather, with some of the more reliable forecasters predicting a severe low-pressure system hitting the south-west over the weekend. If you believe the Daily Express, which I concede … Read More »

I am delighted to report that the Bulletin Book goes to print on Monday, packed with over 30,000 words of analysis covering every race. It would not be fair to subscribers to give too much away, but the main query … Read More »

Fulham lifted us out of trouble last week with a splendid home win against Championship leaders Wolves. As I’ve been writing for a while now, no team is playing better than Fulham but they started so poorly that a top … Read More »

Fulham, Ian Carnaby, Sports news

There will be no turf racing in Britain on Saturday and looking for AW possibilities just for the sake of it is invariably a mistake. The one thing that occurs to me is Encore D’or returning to Lingfield a week … Read More »

Encore D'or, Ian Carnaby

I wrote the other day that I thought West Brom might still avoid the drop from the Premier League to the Championship. I hold to this and cannot, for the life of me, see what purpose would be served by … Read More »