3.45pm Catterick Tips & Betting Preview 31/10/2017

3.45pm Catterick tips for Tuesday’s race. A six-furlong sprint for horses rated 0-80 and with an intriguing nine-horse field declared. Read on for our free betting tips, predictions and analysis.

IN SUMMARY: Short Work will no doubt be a short price but there is value to be found elsewhere with LUCKY BEGGAR (Each Way) the best of them all at his peak. Ignore his last run when he hated the Southwell surface and note that his overall form gives him an excellent chance, with a course and distance win the defining evidence that he is likely to run a big race again this afternoon.

1 SHORT WORK – Very much the in-form option with wins at Pontefract, Red car, and Catterick over this trip before a decent third to Shady McCoy at York last time out when looking once paced o erf the seventh furlong. Dropped back to his favourite trip this afternoon he has been dropped a pound for his last run which seems pretty generous of the handicapper. He does need a career best to win here but may yet have more to offer.  

2 LUCKY BEGGAR – Took a Class Two handicap at Newbury off a rating of 102 in 2014 when trained by Charlie Hills and although unlikely to ever repeat that standard he still has a race or two left in him. He does have a course and distance win to his name from June off of just the four pounds higher so has to be a major player here with the return to this track sure to suit, and if we ignore his recent efforts at Southwell when he hated the equitrack, he has a solid chance of success again this afternoon.

3 ADAM’S ALE – He has been a bit of an in and out performer lately and may be getting wise to the game at the age of eight though if he does bounce back to his June Haydock form when winning off a rating just a pound lower than he could well get involved in the finish. He looked to hate the heavy going at Pontefract last time out when only eleventh of thirteen but may do better on the predicted soft going this afternoon, which he has won on twice before. 

4 BALLYMORE CASTLE – Just the one win from thirty-one starts now for Richard Fahey’s five-year-old who will be ridden by Paul Hanagan here which makes for a potent combination. His best recent run was a third in June over further on soft ground at Doncaster in a better race than this, and if he can repeat that he has every chance this afternoon off of five pounds lower, but his last run was a last of fourteen at Windsor (when he may have found the going too fast for him?), and he needs to do a lot better than that regardless.

5 TRICKY DICKY – Six wins and six places from his twenty-four career starts and a highly respectable third to Boy In The Bar at Newcastle last time out, beaten just a length and a quarter over this trip on the polytrack. He has already won over this course and distance in July last year though admittedly off a rating eighteen pounds lower, but still seems to be improving at the age of four and he ought to be capable of threatening for the places at least.   

6 LAUGHTON – Well weighted here with his last win at Goodwood off seven pounds ore but that was on much faster ground back in July 2016 and he seems sure to encounter a very different surface this afternoon. Last time out he finished ninth of ten at Musselburgh and he has been dropped three pounds since but with the going against him he has his work cut out to win today.

7 SEE THE SUN – Tim Easterby seems to be coaxing a renewed run of decent enough form from his six-year-old son of Assertive who has placed in the first three home in his last three races, all over five furlongs at Redcar, Musselburgh, and Newcastle. He has won over this trip in four of his five successes and ought to be more at home with the extra furlong and if he can repeat any of his better efforts he will challenge here having scored off marks as high as 90 in the past.

8 PEACHEY CARNEHAN – One of the busiest horses here with eighteen runs this season and four wins at Wolverhampton (twice), Doncaster, and Leicester, two of them over this distance. Put up a huge thirteen pounds after winning at Bath he has struggled in four races since and may well need or deserve a break after a long hard season.

9 SPIRIT OF ZEBEDEE – Bottom weight for John Quinn’s charge though he does have to carry two pounds more than his handicap mark which is not a help. He is a course and distance winner after scoring here by a length in August but that was off of a nine pounds lower rating and he will not find this as easy. Yet to win on going as soft as today’s and looks up against it at these weights.