Football News

RHOSCOLYN win the trustatrader.com Handicap (2.45pm) at Haydock Park’s first Flat meeting of the season, while MINELLA COCOONER can strike in the bet365 Gold Cup Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap) (GBB Race) (3.35pm) on the final day of the Jumps campaign at Sandown on Saturday afternoon.

With Willie Mullins looking set to land the British trainers’ title following the Randox Grand National victory of I Am Maximus at Aintree Racecourse two weeks ago and Macdermott’s success in the Scottish version at Ayr seven days ago, anything he is sending over to Britain to clinch the championship deserves a second look. And of his three set to line-up in the feature at the Esher track, Minella Cocooner looks likely to strike Gold.

The eight-year-old has only won one of his eight chase starts but appears to be progressing well and has rarely run a bad race. He was a fine third in the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse at the start of the month, when beaten just four lengths by Intense Raffles. He looks a progressive staying chaser – one of many in Mullins’ County Carlow stable – and he can bring the Irish trainer another big staying handicap success and confirm a first title success in Britain and see him emulate the legendary Vincent O’Brien in winning championships on both sides of the Irish Sea in the same season.

Last year’s winner Kitty’s Light – a fine fifth behind I Am Maximus in the Aintree showpiece two weeks ago – will surely go close again in defence of his crown having backed-up quickly his Scottish National victory at Sandown 12 months ago. Others with a chance of running into a place are Dan Skelton’s Le Milos; the Lydia Richards-trained Certainly Red; and Annual Invictus, from the Chris Gordon stable.

In the

Dan Skelton