THIS has to be one of my favourite Saturdays of the whole national hunt season with the Tingle Creek and Henry VIII Novices’ chases along with some cracking handicaps at Sandown Park and the Becher Chase and Many Clouds at Aintree. The ground for both venues, although drying, should be safe for all concerned so hopefully there won’t be too many scratchings.

Let’s start at the Esher track where as Paul Nicholls has already stated his Greaneteen is on “home soil” for his big clash with Edwardstone and SHISHKIN in the Tingle Creek Chase at 2.55. That love of the track brings them very close together on official ratings and of course the recent Haldon Gold Cup winner has the added advantage of being race fit.

However, I just think that the market has over compensated for that view, and with an outstanding record when fresh and on this springy ground, I think that Nicky Henderson’s charge still holds a class advantage. It is too easily forgotten that he thumped the new market leader by 10 lengths in the Grade Two Desert Orchid Chase last year, albeit in receipt of 3lbs, and I think that he is the value call now in this normally spine-tingling two mile speed test.