Newcastle Placepot: Tuesday May 21

Newcastle plays host to racing on Tuesday.

Timeform's Joe Nordoff tackles the Placepot at Newcastle on Tuesday...

14:30 - There are a limited number of runners to kick off the first leg of today's Placepot and the number is equalled by the lack of quality. With half the field already looking rather exposed, Assembly should be the answer. William Haggas has a 47% strike rate with his 3 year olds at Gosforth Park in recent seasons, and whilst Assembly is unlikely to be one of the handler's leading lights, the drop to 5f looks sure to suit. With his forceful tactics he utilised at Beverley last time this should be well within his compass. 

15:00 - Newcastle has a habit of playing host to these tricky handicaps, none more so than leg two and we will take two against the field to aid our cause, beginning with Lord Franklin. Eric Alston's charge hasn't been seen at his best in two starts this term yet that is no cause for alarm. Having needed his first run after a break, then encountering unsuitable ground at Warwick last time, today's trip/ground seem to be his optimum conditions and the son of Iceman should be able to make his mark. He is joined by Dream Walker in our perm, another who should find trip/ground right up his street, in what is a particularly trappy affair.  

15:30 - It doesn't get any easier in leg three with division 2 of the above handicap to sink our teeth into, and again it looks a necessity to err on the side of caution and select two against the field in our bid to come out of the race unscathed. Garzoni hasn't set the world alight to date yet this relatively unexposed four-year-old should have come on for his two starts since joining Tim Easterby. The application of blinkers and a tongue tie plus the services of Graham Gibbons should see him to better effect. This leads us on to our second selection, Jupiter Fidius, who in stark contrast to Garzoni is older and more exposed but offers us the safety of acting on the ground and at the trip and runs consistently around this mark year on year.

16:00 - Leg four sees us only with the two places on offer but it shouldn't be a problem for the Roger Varian-trained Hasheem. One of the only runners in the line-up who is sure to act on the ground, things didn't go to plan for him at Chester last time, with him having a hopeless task from his position, and he should be in the thick of the action for his in-form stable.

16:30 - Race five does not look as competitive as it first appears and the horse with the most interesting profile has to be Mean It. A good second on his only start this season, he gets the opportunity to race off just a 1 lb higher mark here. With the step up in trip likely to eek that extra improvement and Graham Lee booked we will put our trust in him to take us through.

17:00 - What better way to finish than another tricky handicap and once again we select a couple of runners in our bid to try and land the Placepot. Mason Hindmarsh, a winner at Ripon earlier this month, stays this trip and acts on the forecast ground, so he looks one of the more likely ones to give his running. He is joined by Chris Grant's Rock Relief, who developed into a decent hurdler this winter. He has confirmed his liking for the track on numerous occasions, including over C&D, and returns to the Flat off a feasible mark given his recent hurdling exploits; hopefully he can take us over the line.  

Selections:
14:30 - 1
15:00 - 4, 8
15:30 - 2, 4
16:00 - 4
16:30 - 1
17:00 - 2, 6
= 8 lines

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