13th-May-2017

You can see the case for Peace And Co.  If he can get even close to his best, to his Triumph Hurdle-winning self, then he should go very close here off a mark of 144.  However, he is favourite, and that is a fairly significant if.  He ran okay in the Scottish Champion Hurdle last time on his first run since he ran in the 2016 Champion Hurdle, but he will need to improve substantially on that if he is to win today.

John Constable is more solid, he is a bigger price and he is a bet for me at 8/1.  Evan Williams’ horse ran a cracker in the conditional riders’ handicap hurdle at Aintree on Grand National day, when he was upsides Chesterfield when he fell at the last.

He probably wouldn’t have beaten Chesterfield that day, but the two of them had it between them, they were well clear, and Chesterfield came out and won the aforementioned Scottish Champion Hurdle next time off an 11lb higher mark.

That was John Constable’s best run in a long time, and it was his first in a tongue-tie, so it is a positive that he wears the tongue-tie again today.

The handicapper raised John Constable by 5lb for that run, but that was fair, and it takes him up to a mark of just 134, which is still 5lb lower than his peak.  He goes well on good ground, and Davy Russell rides him for just the second time today.  Evan Williams’ horses are in good form these days, and John Constable should go well.

JOHN CONSTABLE WON (ADV 8/1, SP 5/1)