Three unplaced horses saw Saturday's Lucky 15 go down like a lead balloon.
Gorak was the only horse to cover himself in any credit, with a third-placed finish at Haydock.
The other horses were shoddy. First Legion put in a weird performance in France, and John Barleycorn looks like a real donkey. Boston Run was fancied in the market and didn't run too badly, but that means nothing when you don't even place.
Sunday's Lucky 15 bet is advised as an each-way selection.
Bint Al Daar 14/1 (3pl) – Haydock 3.45
The last performance from Bint Al Daar on his stable debut for Kevin Frost would be enough to put many punters off from backing her. That isn't the case for me, and I think his falling handicap mark makes her a tempting bet.
This is an apprentice race, which can be very dodgy to have a bet in, but Alfie Gee seems like a tidy enough rider for the experience he has. Alfie is one of a couple of jockeys in the race who are able to claim, and his 5lb claim makes Bint Al Daar ridiculously well handicapped on her form from earlier this season.
The fact that she has shown strong form this year suggests she is not gone at the game, and that last time out was just a minor blip. She was second at Nottingham in a Class 3 race off a mark of 86, producing an RPR of 90. She had a 7lb claimer on board that day, so she was effectively running off a mark of 79, which is still 7lbs higher than today when you take the 5lb claim into consideration.
She stays the trip, shown by winning at Newmarket in a Class 3 over this distance last year off a mark of 74. Also, she managed to win a Racing League meeting off a mark of 79 over this far, so she is being overlooked in the market.
Better And Better 7/2 (3pl) – Haydock 4.15
I don't think we saw the best of Better And Better last time out in a small field race at Ascot. They didn't go overly quickly that day, and that resulted in Nathan Evans having a rough time settling him. This race isn't a huge field, but there appears to be a lot of pace on offer, and I think that will suit my selection.
A fair few of the runners in here have raced at Royal Ascot, but didn't cover themselves in much glory. Jan Steen has some smart form from his third-placed effort at York, but maybe the horses in that race have just improved plenty, as First Legion (winner) didn't look fantastic yesterday in Saturday's Lucky 15 bet.
Vlad is fancied in the market, but once again, I don't rate him. He doesn't look like a great horse, and I think he is fancied on the basis that some shrewd operators train him.
Accrual 20/1 (5pl) – Haydock 5.15
I am a big fan of the Kubler training team; they go under the radar. They do well with their horses when sending them up north, and I think Accrual could benefit from a speedy run race.
There is pace everywhere in this race, so you'd like to imagine there could be a pace collapse. A couple of horses spring to mind that could capitalise, with my selection being one and Classy Al being the other. Classy Al is on a tough enough mark and gets Paul Mulrennan doing the steering, which is enough to put me off.
My fancy is only a four-year-old and has only raced once this season. He didn't cover himself in glory at Yarmouth, but he pulled too much and was too green on his return from 336 days off the track. His form from the year before was solid, and he looks to be a good handicap mark with him finishing 2nd at Chester off a mark of 83, recording an RPR of 91 for that race.
Be Frank 9/1 (3pl) – Haydock 6.15
If the quick turnaround isn't a hindrance to Be Frank, he is a lively each-way player in this competitive race.
This looks like one of the strongest races of the card. I think I could give a chance to nearly every runner. Be Frank has been knocking at the door this year and has been unlucky in his last few starts, bar his run at Chepstow earlier this week.
His run at the Racing League wasn't a great run, but it's a tricky course, and the pace was holding up all night long that day. He was held up, and that was not the place to be at that meeting, so in those circumstances, he ran well.
Prior to that, his form has been strong. The third-placed finish at Chelmsford over a mile was a very good effort off just 1lb lower. The winner has since won a Class 3 race worth 26k, recording a very smart performance for the grade. The runner-up in the Chelmsford race was over the runner-up at the Racing League meeting at Wolverhampton.
GambleAware