4.30pm Haydock Tips & Betting Preview 14/06/2017

Three winning favourites in just the six renewals have seen the punters smiling in this £9,000 contest over a little short of a mile and a half with Roger Varian responsible for the 4/7 shot King Bolete last season, ridden by Andrea Atzeni and owned by Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum. Read on below for an in-depth preview and tip for the 4.30pm at Haydock.

IN SUMMARY: It won’t be quite as easy this time off his new weight but MUSTAFFEQ is improving at speed nad may have one more win in him before the handicapper catches up with him for the in-form David O’Meara stable. Bottom weight First Voyage may prove to be the biggest danger and is perhaps open to the most improvement and could be the one to chase the selection home.

1 MUSTAJEER – Top weight and a big price for Hamdan Al Maktoum’s four-year-old gelding who used to be with Barry Hills and is now with Owen Burrows. One win in a Newmarket maiden in September 2015 is his sole return so far and he was gelded in November last year in the hope it brought improvement. So far nothing has been seen with a thirty-nine length eleventh of twelve at Newmarket after attempting to make all the running and being eased once passed over three furlongs out. This is a drop in class, and he has been dropped three pounds by the handicapper, but until he shows signs of ability again he is impossible to suggest on recent form even for a stable hitting 25% winners.

2 SINDARBAN – Jamie Spencer keeps the ride on the six-year-old after finishing eleven and a half lengths fifth to Galapiat at Epsom last time out over this trip in April. Seventeen races (including over hurdles) have seen wins at Kelso, Hamilton, and Carlisle but none since June 2016 and he does look to be going backwards. The handicapper has been slow to drop him down the ratings and has only dropped him two pounds here, and he will still need a career best to win off this weight.

3 MUSTAFFEQ – David O’Meara has worked wonders with the son of New Approach who joined him from Kevin Prendergast in Ireland when he was sold by Hamdan Al Maktoum to his new owners. He won his first race for new connections at Thirsk last month when a wide margin (three and a quarter lengths) winner of a mile and a half handicap and followed up at Pontefract off nine pounds higher, keeping on well after being held up by Danny Tudhope. Up another six pounds, this will be more of a challenge but with the stable in good form with seven winners from their last eighteen runners for a 39% success rate and over eight points of level stakes profit, he is very hard to ignore.

4 PARISH BOY – Two wins in Ireland for Jim Bolger saw him beat Order of St George twice, and he won the Gold Cup at Ascot and finished third in the Arc last season. Sadly for connections he is yet to repeat anything like that form in seven races since hence his appearance here. Since moving to David Loughlane he has been pulled up at Ayr (over hurdles), and finished eleventh of thirteen, fifth of seven, last of nine, and then last of seven at Chester beaten eleven and a half lengths. This will be his first attempt at this trip, and it is a handicap so all things are possible, but as things stand a case simply cannot be made in his favour on recent efforts for a stable struggling for winners.

5 MARMAJUKE BAY – Trainer Mark Usher has only had one winner from the sixteen runners in the last fortnight which is not encouraging, while the horse has run two acceptable seconds at Kempton and Wolverhampton on the all-weather before a thirty-five length twelfth in a weaker looking race at York last time out. He has won here over course and distance but does seem happier on the all-weather these days and he does look fully exposed and one of the least likely winners, even after a drop of another pound from the handicapper.

6 FIRST VOYAGE – Not necessarily the winner but easily the most intriguing runner with just the three races to his name and a maiden win at Nottingham over a mile and a quarter when keeping on well to get up close home. Willaim Buick retains the ride for trainer Charlie Appleby who has an impressive 39% strike rate in the last fourteen days and he may well be the biggest danger to the selection here.