Friday tips: Dave Nevison marks your card

Henry Candy’s six-year-old gelding hit winning form for the first time in two years at Nottingham recently and, now that he is back in the groove, he can follow up.

The two-year losing spell is a little damning as he was in very good form last summer and finished runner-up a couple of times, and was not completely out in the wilderness.

His mark has been raised 5lb for the win, but he won off a mark of 58 in 2023 and ran creditably off marks in the mid 60s on more than one occasion last year.

He is a front-runner drawn in stall 1 at a track suited to such tactics and I feel there is a good chance he can make all here.

Just Typical won six races on the all-weather over last winter and probably deserved a three-month break by April this year. Ian Williams brought him back at Kempton recently and, though he was unplaced, he ran encouragingly enough.

The gelding has shown no form on turf, but likely wasn’t expected to show anything on his two runs as he raced over 6f and went off at massive odds when clearly being prepared for handicaps.

His wins have largely come over today’s trip of a mile and it is interesting that Williams has decided to apply both a tongue strap and a hood for this Newmarket run. He could possibly have further improvement in him.

Starproof carries a penalty for her victory last week at Ffos Las, but is still well in for that impressive two and three-quarter-length winning margin, and it looks very possible she can follow up turned out quickly.

She was running consistently well off marks in the low to mid 70s last season, so certainly has the back form to score off today’s mark and, though things went well for her last time, she travelled notably well and I am hopeful that it is simply a case that she has come back into form.

Tom Marquand, who rode her to a very good second at Newbury last season, is back on board.