How to bet £20 on the 2019 Randox Health Grand National

Andy Stephens suggests a couple of ways to try and beat the bookmakers with his tips for the big race including horses chalked up at 28-1 and 25-1.

Tiger Roll, Ramses De Teillee, Rathvinden and Pleasant Company permed in Exactas. Twenty £1 bets. Between them, any of the five must finish first and second for the bet to be successful.

The Randox Health Grand National is a one-horse race according to the bookmakers with Tiger Roll a red-hot favourite to become the first back-to-back winner since Red Rum in 1974.

What a year that was. The first episode of Bagpuss was aired, Stephen King published his first book (Carrie), ABBA scooped the Eurovision Song Contest with Waterloo, Muhammed Ali won the Rumble in the Jungle and Ceefax was launched by the BBC. Anyone else still remember the digits for the racing results?

But I digress. Tiger Roll was once described by his owner as “little rat of a thing” but he has become a big cheese in the equine world and the way he routed his rivals in the Cross-Country Chase at the Cheltenham Festival last month suggests he has never been better ahead of his attempt to repeat his victory of 12 months ago.

He ticks every box, apart from perhaps the most important one when it comes to gambling your hard-earned. His odds.

Bookmakers make him a general 4-1 and that price looks skinny given the variables of the race and the depth of the opposition. Red Rum never went off shorter than 9-1 for any of his three wins despite having a massive public following.

I’ll happily laud Tiger Roll as one of the sport’s greats should he add a second Grand National triumph to his four Cheltenham Festival victories but to my eye this looks a deep renewal with several big-priced alternatives making plenty of appeal.

Instead of lumping £20 on Tiger Roll, to get a return of £100, I’m happy to split my stakes on four horses and potentially win a lot more depending on the outcome.

The two contenders who look must bets at the prices are Ramses De Teillee, chalked up at a general 25-1, and Walk In The Mill, available at 28-1 with William Hill.

No seven-year-old has won since 1940 and I guess that’s why Ramses De Teillee is trading at such a big price but the race has radically changed in the past six years – it is run over shorter and the fences have been modified - and that stat may now be something of a red herring.

Younger legs no longer seem at a disadvantage with three eight-year-olds winning in the past four years. To put that in perspective, that age group had only three winners between 1974 and 2014.

The bottom line is that Ramses De Teillee has looked every inch a potential Aintree winner on his past two starts – bustling up Elegant Escape on soft ground in the Welsh Grand National at Chepstow over Christmas before again finishing runner-up in the Grand National Trial at Haydock on his latest start.

He might easily have won both races – a mistake four out at Chepstow was crucial and he probably hit the front too soon at Haydock last time – and the grey is well in at the weights and one of the few in the line-up open to more improvement.

Walk In The Mill has a mile more to gallop than in the Becher Chase but it was a case of the further the better that day, when the going was testing and he beat several course specialists.

He has since been kept ticking over with a couple of runs over hurdles, to protect his mark, and the nine-year-old is running from the right end of the weights.

My other two bets will be on Willie Mullins’ principal contenders - Rathvinden, quoted at a general 10-1, and Pleasant Company, who is 20-1.

Rathvinden looks nailed on to run a big race under Ruby Walsh, who seeks a third win in the race.

He cruised through much of the race when winning the National Hunt Chase over four miles at Cheltenham last season and that form has a glow with the next three home either winning or running well, in big staying handicap chases this campaign.

That victory showed he had all the tools required for Aintree and he was equally slick when landing the Bobbyjo Chase on his return at Fairyhouse in February.

He’s 8lb well in, could hardly be fresher and has that blend of speed and stamina which National aspirants require.

Pleasant Company came close to clawing back Tiger Roll 12 months ago, having also shaped well in the 2017 edition.

I would not be too worried that he has not pulled up any trees in two outings this season as Aintree has no doubt again been his main objective.

Walsh’s decision to reject him speaks for itself but Paul Townend, on course to win the jockeys’ championship in Ireland, is himself a class act and won the Cheltenham Gold Cup on Al Boum Photo last month after Walsh got his sums wrong.

Finally, be aware that Ladbrokes, William Hill, Betfair, BetVictor, Paddy Power, Coral, Betfred and Boylesports all offer six places in terms of each-way betting.

How To Bet £20 on the 2019 Grand National (5.15 Aintree on Saturday, live on Racing TV):

£4 win and £2 each-way Ramses De Teillee a general 25-1

£3 win and £1.50 each-way on Walk In The Mill at 28-1 with William Hill

£4 win on Rathvinden at a general 10-1

£2 win on Pleasant Company at a general 20-1

Tiger Roll, Ramses De Teillee, Walk In The Mill, Rathvinden and Pleasant Company permed in Exactas. Twenty £1 bets. Between them, any of the five must finish first and second for the bet to be successful.