Doncaster comes to the rescue but this is still very much a day for the mudlarks

Sadly there is no Cheltenham this weekend, but we have still got the mighty Shishkin, a fiercely competitive Sky Bet Handicap Chase and some other fascinating races at Doncaster to enjoy.

Only the severely deluded will have raised their eyebrows late on Friday morning when Cheltenham bowed to the inevitable and called off Festival Trials day.

After deluge upon deluge in recent days, underfoot conditions in the Cotswolds probably resemble a swamp, and plenty of trainers will privately have breathed a sigh of relief that some of their big guns for the festival won't now be subjected to a slog in such gruelling ground with those invigorating four days in March now little more than six weeks away.