Sandown Placepot: Saturday March 9

Today's attempt at the Placepot comes from Sandown

Tony McFadden attempts to negotiate his way through the Sandown card and land the Placepot...

13:30- Conditions looked testing at Sandown yesterday and this could provide quite a test for some of these juveniles. Mr Lando is the first horse we turn to, his second in a heavy-ground juvenile hurdle at Fontwell offering encouragement that he will cope with conditions. As a further positive, trainer Tony Carroll has been in fine form of late, sending out six winners already this month, and the booking of top jockey Wayne Hutchinson is also an advantage. Dollar Bill was undoubtedly flattered when winning comfortably at Folkestone, taking advantage of a suicidal early pace set by the leaders, but he has at least proven his effectiveness on a soft surface and was in the process of running well when coming down at Warwick last time, so will be the second string to our bow.

14:05- A typically-competitive renewal of this race and it could be worth taking on those at the top of the market in hope of a result. Many Clouds may be seen as a chaser of the future, but he has certainly shown ability over hurdles and, although conceding weight to a host of unexposed rivals won't be easy, his exemplary attitude is sure to stand him in good stead. King of The Wolds was slightly unlucky to bump into a really promising type at Catterick last time, but it registered as another step in the right direction for Malcolm Jefferson's charge and he will have no problems with testing conditions. Another outsider worth including is Lucy Wadham's Le Reve. He is progressing well over hurdles, following a creditable run in the Grade 1 Tolworth with victory in a strong novice hurdle at Market Rasen, and he will benefit from the extra emphasis on stamina.

14:40- Rigadin de Beauchene displayed stamina in abundance to land the Classic Chase at Warwick, seeing off a couple of in-form rivals, and he followed it up with an even better effort in defeat at Haydock last time, finding only the ultra-progressive Well Refreshed too strong. He has not always been the most fluent of jumpers, which is a slight concern at this venue, but he has been performing consistently well this term, is a strong stayer and goes in the ground.

15:15- Mr Mole clearly possesses plenty of ability and is well handicapped, but he is not the most straightforward and is sure to be carrying a huge amount of lines. Shammick Boy enters this race at the top of his game, having won readily at Chepstow recently, and the form of his penultimate effort at Wetherby is looking strong with his short-head conqueror following up during the week. He looks sure to give his running and could be underrepresented in the pool. It could also be worth including Whitby Jack, the horse that finished second to Shammick Boy at Chepstow, as he will have no problems on the ground and isn't yet fully exposed. Tanerko Emery is another that should revel in the testing conditions and shaped with conspicuous promise at Ffos Las last month.

15:50- Free Thinking may have made heavy weather of justifying short-priced favouritism at Fakenham, but she arguably did extremely well to overcome racing towards the inside of the track- considering the ground is usually a lot more testing there- and a positive view should be taken of the effort. She should be difficult to keep out of the frame.

16:25- Rebel Rebellion is possibly the most likely winner, his Cheltenham effort behind Captain Conan setting the standard, though his most recent run, finishing well beaten behind Super Duty, was slightly disappointing and he has a couple of questions to answer on his return from a three-month absence. Ciceron looks like a more solid proposition, regularly hitting the frame over fences this season, and he should put up a bold bid.

Selections:
13:30- 6, 7
14:05- 1, 12, 13
14:40- 2
15:15- 1, 7, 19
15:50- 5
16:25- 1
= 18 lines

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