ALEX DONOHUE

Weblog: A Ladbrokes look at the sport

Shame for poor Messi to have to play second fiddle

There couldn’t have been a better inspiration to put pen to paper for the latest blog entry, than when flickingthrough the Mail’s Weekend TV guide I saw our Blue Riband as the sport viewing pick of the day for Wednesday.

Not a bad coup, jocking off a European semi-final involving the world’s best club side (Hobbsy – to avoid any confusion, I’m referring to Messi and co here).  Judging by the quality of the card, the canine superstars look set to display a similar fleet of foot and agility as the Catalan giants in their quest for glory, while Ballymac Iniesta stands out as the coincidence bet of the night on the card.

A bitch to keep an eye on in the first race live on Sky is Roeview Beauty.  Top grade at nearby Monmore, she’s often slow away but builds up plenty of momentum to rattle home and a trial of 24.48sec gives her more than a squeak on the night. I’ve been told she’ll prefer an inside draw, but the form in the book around our track puts her in the mix on merit. The certainty in that race is that as she kicks on with the line in sight, the noise from the terrace will come from the ‘Ladbrokes Live’ syndicate headed by both Scheduling manager Edward Beesley and the voice of Monmore Green, George Atkinson. David Croft, of BBC F1 commentary fame is another member and sadly misses the race as he makes his way to Bahrain for the Grand Prix. I’m sure a decent lap round should guarantee another Sky race  this year, hopefully to fit in with the motorsport season.

As for the final, it’s a mouth-watering affair. A case can be made for every runner and in terms of pricing we’re going to be competitive. Definitely a ‘you pay your money, you take your choice’ sort of race with no obvious dog which should capture the imagination of the betting pubic at the expense of any others.

Sky regulars will know the likes of Ten Large Down and 2012 Arc Winner Farloe Titan like the back of their hand. It’s Diane Henry’s big bustling dog which we think will be hard to pass in one and, at 4/1, punters have no better incentive than to tie their colours to his well-known mast. I’m looking forward to the touch of glamour she brings to the track and I’m sure plenty will be hoping to see the podium decked out in pink after the big race.

There’s no doubt Young Sid has been the most impressive in qualification, landing the odds for shop punters twice to make the final and on account of a less-than-favourable draw we’re keen to get him in the book.  If we’ve got it wrong here and Paul Young’s in-mate makes a mockery of our lack of respect thenwe’ll need our chalk at the ready for a new Derby quote, despite the timing of this race.

Bandicoot Fionn, the solo wide has the dream box but we’re not convinced he’s just good enough. We could be forcedto eat our words if he strings them out after being awake at the lids.

All in all, it’s another top event with the standard high class supporting card, live on Sky. What more could you ask for? The usual crowd will be jumping on the Ladbrokes tour bus to make the trip from Rayners Lane to Hall Green, and in my case it’s another track ticked off the list.

Talking of tracks ticked off the list, we welcomed Monmore to the Racing Post TV service on Thursday night with some enjoyable and competitive racing which threw up the age old debate of graded action versus opens.  The solution seems simple to me; just enjoy both! With RPGTV now in full swing complementing a busy Sky schedule (not to mention the popular opens in the betting shops from tracks like Sheffield, Nottingham and Romford) punters can take their pick virtually every night of the week.  I apologise for my biased view but the mix of staying and hurdle opens with graded races at both trips on Saturdays at Crayford ticks every box.

I don’t want to give too much away now, but those staying opens at Crayford may mean a bit more to me in months to come. After visiting Barry O’Sullivan down the road in the Kent countryside  there were a couple of his which caught the eye with an exciting project in mind, which I’m hoping takes the channel, track, and most importantly sport to a wider audience.

Watch this space is all I can say.

Enjoy the action at Hall Green, and be lucky. If you have any idea of the winner of the big one tweet me - @LadsAlex.