Target trainer can hit Turners bullseye with novice hurdler carrying plenty of positives

You watch an ante-post bet look better and better all season and then the ground potentially scuppers you at the last minute.

While the frustration will be even worse for Lossiemouth backers, the weather has been a bit of a blow for my bet on Stayers’ Hurdle favourite Teahupoo, who had shortened from 4-1 into odds-on since being advised in this column the best part of 12 months ago but is now odds-against and could well continue to drift.

On soft ground I think he would win comfortably. But with the dry, warm period we've just had, Gordon Elliott's 2024 winner isn't going to get that and others have come more into the picture, such as stablemate The Wallpark and the mercurial pair of Langer Dan and Mystical Power.