Matt Brocklebank provides the racing tip of the day and he's backing Jonjo O'Neill to saddle a winner at Newbury.
Recommended bet:
2pts win Beggars Cross in 3.50 Newbury at 7/2
Beggars Cross looks worth following having opened his fencing account at the fourth time of asking at Doncaster last month.
He wasn't the quickest to get to grips with hurdling last season and it's been a case of more of the same this time but there was much to like about his hard-fought success on Town Moor.
The subject of strong support in the market, the 4/1 chance was a little tapped for toe when the pace quickened but finished with gusto under Aidan Coleman to beat the well-treated Carli King by a length and a quarter.
Granted, Beggars Cross has felt the wrath of the assessor by way of a 9lb rise ahead of today's Agetur UK Novices' Limited Handicap Chase (3.50) but he's still a couple of pounds lower than when starting out over fences at Aintree in October and now he's got the hang of it he could certainly still have something in hand.
The slight (fractionally more than a furlong) drop in distance is of no real concern with the switch to Newbury's galloping track very much countering that potential negative, while the good to soft (soft in places) ground should ensure his stamina becomes a factor late in the piece.
It's been a typically quiet winter for the Jonjo O'Neill stable but with Cheltenham looming on the horizon the signs are positive that things are beginning to click into gear at Jackdaws Castle.
A win strike-rate of 16 per cent (7-44) throughout February was an improvement on every individual month since September and the fact five of those wins have arrived in the past fortnight strongly suggests it's going to be a profitable March for the stable.
O'Neill also sent out a couple of seconds from his two runners yesterday, Fort Worth and Colbert Station beaten a head and a neck respectively at Taunton and Ludlow, so hopes should be high Beggars Cross will run right up to form.
Posted at 0855 on 03/03/17
