Dramatic Dan Skelton revival gives pensive punters a kicking

Tricky thing, trainer form. The super-powerful Dan Skelton yard went through rather a quiet patch over the first dozen days of the year, with the sole exception of Midnight River landing a valuable handicap at Cheltenham, and that caused some of the more thoughtful punters to wonder about the stable's chances at the weekend.

"A few of them got a cold and that's all it was," Skelton himself admitted during Saturday's action, referring to a recent time when he felt some of his charges were "well below where they should be".

It was an easy admission to make because by that time the Warwickshire trainer had won four races, including the Lanzarote and a pair of Grade 2s. Imagine what he'll achieve when the yard is flying!