Barry Geraghty’s William Hill blog: Davy could be a Saint at Ffos Las

William Hill ambassador Barry Geraghty looks over this weekend’s racing from Ffos Las, Fairyhouse and Punchestown.

Ffos Las, Saturday

The thing that caught my eye in the Towton Novices’ Chase (1:15pm) was SAINT DAVY being five pounds better off with Handstands for a four-length beating at Sandown last time. That was only Saint Davy’s first start over fences and to go to Sandown on your chase debut is a big test. He jumped well there and would have learned a lot from that. There isn’t much between the two on hurdles ratings, and I feel Saint Davy is the one who could step forward the most after their last run. The Jonjo and AJ O’Neill team are in flying form too and are operating at a 35% strike rate in the last fortnight.

ROSSCAHILL brings most potential to the three-mile handicap hurdle (2:58pm). He’s unbeaten after a point-to-point success and two wins over hurdles, both of which came at Ffos Las. He looks as though he will stay all day, which will be needed over this trip and on the ground, and that’s a big positive for him. One Big Bang could be the danger, but I’d be worried about him coming back so quickly after running at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day.

Fairyhouse, Saturday

The Dan & Joan Moore Memorial (1:45pm) is a competitive looking race. Gavin Cromwell runs three here and his MIDNIGHT IT IS has looked progressive in his last few starts. He hacked up last time out at Navan and the runner-up from that race won on his next start, so the form has a decent look to it. He’s gone up 12 pounds in the handicap and now steps into a better race, but has a low racing weight and could still be on the up.

Punchestown, Sunday

Lecky Watson is favourite for the two-and-a-half-mile Grade 3 Novice Chase (12:55pm) after he put in a good performance to beat Slade Steel in Naas last time, but I prefer DOWN MEMORY LANE. He was a little bit disappointing last time in the Henry VIII at Sandown, but it was only his second run over fences and I’d say Sandown’s jumping test was too much for him this early in his career. He really impressed me at Navan the time before, so I’m going to give him another chance, and I expect to see a much better show this time around.

The Moscow Flyer (2:25pm) is an intriguing race which is set to feature the current Supreme favourite in Salvatore Mundi. His place at the head of the market for the Cheltenham opener is largely down to reputation at this stage. He was second to Sir Gino two years ago as a juvenile in France, and finished 17 lengths behind Majborough in the Triumph Hurdle on his next outing. He won an egg-and-spoon race at Tipperary last spring by the length of the straight, but the time he clocked there was almost exactly the same as the mares’ maiden hurdle half-an-hour later, so while he did win in a canter, he certainly didn’t break the track record in the process. I put SKY LORD up as one of my horses to follow this season, and he won his maiden hurdle nicely at Cork last time. His bumper form is very strong, as he was only beaten a neck by Sporting Glory at Fairyhouse last season and that horse has form that ties in closely with the current top-rated novice hurdler in Britain and Ireland, Romeo Coolio. There should be more to come from Sky Lord and he could offer a bit of value against the favourite.