Placepot pointers: Trust Gray to gallop on to victory at Carlisle

You’ll need a keen eye for novice hurdlers and novice chasers if you are to make it past half-way in the Carlisle Placepot today!

Any shocks could see us return a bumper dividend like we did here back in January, where a £1 stake returned £1,871.

However, the team are going aggressive with their perm, with just four suggested lines off the back of today’s pointers.

It’ll be even harder work than usual to see out the race up Carlisle’s stiff finish on Sunday with Heavy ground all round in Cumbria. And with rain forecast all weekend, it’s not going to get any quicker.

Fergal O’Brien’s ASK DILLON (Leg 5 - 14:10) is a horse you can set your watch by in these conditions. The seven-year-old has yet to finish out of the frame on ground described as Good to Soft or worse, outside of Grade 1 company.

His fourth in a Grade 3 event at Haydock last time out showed him for what he is, a very solid staying handicap hurdler. This race isn’t as deep and off the same mark as his last run on Merseyside, he’s fancied to at least finish in the places.

It’s hard to imagine the third race of the day (13:10) taking much winning, and the eye is immediately drawn to Donald McCain’s new recruit GALLOPONGRAY. When trained in Ireland by Colin Bowe he finished third behind Skyace, a horse who has since gone on to win at Grade 3 level. That form is far and away the strongest on offer here, and while it was back in June, a repeat of that would see him win this. He’s been pointing since, finishing in the frame twice, before running out an easy winner at Tinahely, so clearly comes here in decent heart.

POOKIE PEKAN (Leg 4 - 13:35) tends to save his best for Carlisle, winning at the venue in fine style over 2m4f in the mud last year. He was perhaps stretched by the 3m test here in October, but still ran a cracker to finish fourth, beaten 2½l by Court Dreaming on good ground. A drop back in trip is likely to see him back to somewhere near his best at a venue he’s recorded his four highest Racing Post Ratings. He won’t be the biggest price in the world, but as an option outside of the top two or three in the market, he looks a good option.

If Sextant and JAYAAAH can jump, it’s hard not to see the pair fill the first two places home in the opening leg (12:00). The former was a Listed winner on the flat and brings some smart form on the level as he makes his hurdling debut for Keith Dalgleish.

He’s likely to be the short-priced favourite here so it might be worth chancing JAYAAAH as your sole runner in leg one. He was a very respectable second to Third Time Lucki in a bumper two starts back and with that one finishing fourth at the Cheltenham Festival and now looking like a very smart novice, the form seems decent enough.

Should either of the two named runners fail to deliver on their first start over obstacles, expect a big chunk of the pool to exit at the first hurdle.

Leg 1: 5 Leg 2: 2 Leg 3: 8 Leg 4: 4, 6 Leg 5: 1 Leg 6: 1, 5