Protektorat pushes team without star players to top of Ten to Follow table

On a weekend when the non-appearance of Constitution Hill at Ascot and the Haydock flop of A Plus Tard were the chief talking points, it is no coincidence that the two teams at the top of the Tote Ten to Follow table have neither jumping star in their ranks.

Goalpoststowinningposts 3 has swept to the top thanks to 60.70 points from Protektorat’s victory in the Betfair Chase and two more Saturday winners in Botox Has, who garnered 27.50 points at Haydock, and Boothill, who collected 14.60 at Ascot.

And while Protektorat features in 7.8 per cent of stables, Botox Has and Boothill were picked by only 0.1 per cent.

Coole Cody goes clear of sole rival Saint Calvados at Ascot on SaturdayCredit: Edward Whitaker

The new leader knocks Topofthegame off the pinnacle but that rival also added to his tally thanks to 23.75 points from Coole Cody, which might have been somewhat unexpected as the winner was the outsider of two in the Chanelle Pharma 1965 Chase and would have been the outsider of five if the original declarations had all taken part.

There will have been a lot of disappointed Ten to Follow players at the weekend as A Plus Tard and Constitution Hill are the two most popular picks in the competition, with 72.9 per cent and 71.9 per cent representation respectively.

Of the 20 most popular choices, the only one to score is Jonbon, who is in 38.9 per cent of teams and brought in 11.40 points for his impressive success at Warwick last week.

The Latest Standings

LEADING HORSES
1 Protektorat 60.70 points
2 Home By The Lee 52.50
3 Botox Has 27.50
4 I Like To Move It 27.30
5 State Man 26.40
6 Does He Know 24.70
7 Banbridge 23.78
8 Coole Cody 23.75
9 Ga Law 23.30
10 Captain Guinness 22.80

LEADING TEAMS
1 Goalpoststowinningposts 3 130.10 points
2 Topofthegame 126.35
3 Dinsdale legend 124.30
4 Deldode16 123.10
5 Flagship 9 123.08
6 Iansera1 122.90
7 Ksac 122.28
8 Ksbc 122.28
9 Don Cossack10 122.28
10 Cannonballs 48 121.95

LEADER'S TEAM
Protektorat 60.70 points
Botox Has 27.50
I Like To Move It 27.30
Boothill 14.60
Dusart 0
Editeur Du Gite 0
Edwardstone 0
Envoi Allen 0
Epatante 0
Zanahiyr 0

To catch up with all the latest news on running plans read:

Epatante and Constitution Hill remain in Fighting Fifth contention

What's on this week: Coral Gold Cup and Fighting Fifth take centre stage

Paisley Park showcasing 'usual spark' as Lavelle aims stable star at Newbury

Bet £5, get £20 in free Placepot bets. New customers online only. Place your first bet on racing pools for a minimum of £/€5 and win or lose you will receive £/€20 Placepot Tote Credit redeemable against UK & Irish Placepot bets only. Tote Credit cannot be withdrawn, exchanged, or substituted and expires after seven days. Qualifying bet is the first racing pool bet added to the betslip. Ten to Follow, virtual and football bets do not qualify. UK & ROI customers only. 18+. Full T&Cs apply. begambleaware.org.