Dave Nevison's top tips for Thursday: Country’N’Western can hold sway

Our top tipster, Dave Nevison, has a couple of fancies for the meeting at haydock plus another tip for the action at Chelmsford. Watch how they are live on Racing TV.

Has his first run in a handicap after two wins in maiden and conditions company, which have shown him to be a very promising sort.

Simon and Ed Crisford have had an excellent summer and the fact that they regard an opening mark of 93 as a suitable entry point to handicaps must be encouraging.

Without A Fight looked to most eyes like a potential Listed class runner last time and has landed himself in a relatively uncompetitive handicap here on ground that will not be a concern. He has a solid favourite’s chance.

More rain is forecast at Haydock on Thursday but it certainly won’t worry this filly, whose only victory to date came on heavy ground.

She proved again that such conditions suit her very well when runner-up in the mud at Catterick last week. She is able to race off the same mark but is due to go up 3lb in the future. Her jockey will no doubt know her well and is a competent amateur.

There are so few selling handicaps these days but I love them and my fading memory seems to remember most cards starting off with one and some trainers being known as selling plate kings.

He and his jockey, 7lb claimer Selma Grage, have twice been very narrowly beaten and have a great chance to make amends for those defeats here. Country’N’Western has either won or been narrowly beaten into second when dropped to this grade of race.