'If Anglers Crag stays he's got a massive chance' - key quotes and analysis for the Eider Chase

There is a case for saying the Eider provides the stiffest test of stamina under the rules of racing. Newcastle is of a seriously galloping nature. The course's lowest point is at the start of the home straight, its highest point shortly after the winning post and a prevailing coastal wind blows at least partly into runners' faces as they climb.

Newcastle also manages to get more testing underfoot than most tracks subject to sea winds. Those factors combined are likely to make up for the Eider being shorter than the Midlands National (by 170 yards) and Grand National (240 yards).

It is possible to get too hung up on stamina. Kitty's Light won last year's race because he was irresistibly handicapped. That he stayed well was a prerequisite but not a decisive factor. He would not be any more doughty than the runner-up The Galloping Bear.

That horse returns off the same mark this season. He went up 5lb for finishing second to Kitty's Light, on account of the gap back to the rest. Now returned to last year's mark, with an extra 5lb off his back courtesy of Joe Anderson's claim, the handicapping case for him is easy to make.

RP Recommends: how to bet on the Eider Chase

By Tom Park, audience editor

Place terms are your friend for this marathon test. It promises to be a war of attrition and the ground is set to be heavy, so take advantage of Sky Bet and William Hill's five places on the race.

When conditions are so tough, it can often result in unpredictable results regarding the winner, but can make it easier backing a horse to make the frame as some of the field just won't be up for the task. Therefore, backing a horse with stamina assured with extra place terms is the way to go here.

Make sure you shop around for a price perspective as because Sky Bet or William Hill aren't best odds guaranteed, it can sometimes be in your favour to take SP if their price looks on the skinny side, particularly if you're placing your bet moments before the race.

It is much harder to do the same about Anglers Crag. Horses that go up 11lb in the weights for their most recent win, and 20lb in little more than six weeks, rarely look chucked in. Still, it would be unfair to paint him as a soft favourite. His form has been strong in the lower grades he has been competing in, while he has hinted at deep reserves of stamina. You can justify him as favourite for a weaker-than-average Eider.

Possibly the two most interesting horses from a handicapping perspective are Cruz Control and Major Dundee. The former is an unexposed novice, who has looked ready to take off once racing over three miles. Going straight into the Eider asks the question in the most searching terms possible, but he is surely a stayer in the making.

Major Dundee is 3lb higher than when he won last year's Midlands National. He has also been third in a Scottish National, the race that the last two Eider winners have gone on to win on their next outing.

He comes with risks: some poor runs this season have betrayed signs of a knife-edge temperament shared with many other sons of Scorpion. Yet those runs have generally been in stronger races than this. If you want a combination of ability and demonstrable stamina, then Major Dundee is as close to a perfect answer as exists in this year's field.
Race analysis by Keith Melrose

Going update

The ground is heavy, soft in places and clerk of the course Eloise Quayle said: "We've been dry pretty much for the last couple of days, with a little bit of drizzle this morning that cleared through pretty quickly. It's looking bright and sunny and almost still for us, with a 3-4mph breeze."

'It's a real dream and a privilege to have a runner in a race like this'

This might not be a stellar running of the Eider Chase on ratings, but the prestige of the marathon handicap is not lost on Andy Irvine.

The East Grinstead-based trainer is making the 650-mile round trip from Sussex, via an overnight stop at Southwell, to saddle Gold Clermont, who has won two of her last three starts.

"It's a real dream and a privilege to have a runner in a race like this," said Irvine. "It's our first runner at the track and our first runner in a big Saturday handicap as well, which is really important.

"We're stepping up in class again but she's in there off a mark, so why not. I just hope the ground's nice and testing."

Gold Clermont: a first runner at Newcastle for trainer Andy IrvineCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

Rose Dobbin is also hopeful of testing conditions with Rath An Luir, who is rated 16lb lower than when sixth in this race in 2022 and 3lb lower than when fifth last season.

Both of those were won by subsequent Scottish Grand National winners and on the 11-year-old's chances of making it third time lucky, Dobbin said: "It doesn't look as strong as it has been in the past.

"I was really pleased with both his runs in the race but the ground was only good to soft and he really needs proper soft ground, which he has at last got, so we're really excited.

"I wish he was a couple of years younger but he hasn't got loads of miles on the clock. If he runs like he did at Kelso when he won, then he's got to have a bit of an each-way squeak."

What they say

Ben Clarke, trainer of The Galloping Bear
He's on the same mark as when second in the race last year behind a well-handicapped horse. The ground has come right for him, testing conditions over four miles is absolutely ideal. Joe Anderson claiming 5lb is a bonus and I think he's got a good, solid each-way chance. There doesn't seem to be a plot horse in there at all.

Seamus Mullins, trainer of Tommie Beau
The form of the Plumpton race has worked out and we go there with rock-solid form. We're not ground-dependent at all, he's won on everything. We're on a career-high mark but we deserve to be there. Let's hope we've a bit of wiggle room to play with.

Alan King, trainer of Major Dundee
Having run well on his first start this season, he's disappointed me the last twice. He showed he was an out-and-out stayer when winning the Midlands Grand National and this should be a good place to get him back on track.

Major Dundee: won last season's Midlands Grand National

Tom Lacey, trainer of Cruz Control
He's unexposed and I thought it would be an interesting fact-finding mission. I'm not sure it's the deepest of races. The tempo of the race will suit him and we know he'll handle the ground, it'll just be a case of whether he stays that extreme trip or not.

Brian Ellison, trainer of Anglers Crag
He's surprised us as his form wasn't very good but he's settled down and done well for us. His performance at Musselburgh was a definite improvement again, winning well on a sharp track that probably wouldn't suit him. The form is working out well as the second has won since. The ground's going to test him and if he doesn't stay he doesn't, but if he does he's got a massive chance.

Sandy Thomson, trainer of Flower Of Scotland
She won the Borders National very well and it hasn't quite gone to plan this season. Hopefully, we've got her back to something like her best, but it's a slight concern she hasn't run for so long.

Sam England, trainer of Fenland Tiger
Everything suggests that he'll stay. He's getting a pull in the weights from the favourite [Anglers Crag] from when he last took him on, so there's lots in his favour. He's only a novice, so he just needs to put in a good round of jumping and get in a rhythm.
Reporting by Charlie Huggins

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3.20 Southwell: Can top-class Lord North land another Winter Derby on his way to more Meydan riches? 

3.37 Kempton: 'There's improvement in him off his mark' - Dan Skelton eyeing another valuable handicap with course specialist Flegmatik 

3.50 Fairyhouse: 'He'll love the ground and trip' - can Fairyhouse specialist I Am Maximus conquer the Grand National favourite in Bobbyjo Chase? 

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