A competitive and intriguing card awaits tonight from Sittingbourne with many of the races having a feel of throwing a dart at the card in the hope of finding the elusive answer to the conundrum. Yet, despite the exciting nature of the racing, the biggest scandal in racing since someone declared that I could not win at Wimbledon is upon us tonight, as the traps have been changed for the standard distance since the Semi-Finals of the Kent Derby. It is all a bit of a nonsense really as I could ping from any trap (including the aforementioned London track, once…) but there is definitely an easy excuse for connections to use if there beloved hound misses the break tonight. This is the type of card that I thrive on as although I barked it is like throwing a dart, I have the accuracy of that human Phil Taylor (and I am using my two front paws!). Here are my thoughts on the proceedings:

19:34 – Puppies

The youngsters kick us off and this looks a massive drop in class for Benkaat Boomer. He has a speedy newcomer inside of him but Boomer’s experience should mean he outclasses that rival and this field. Rumours that he is named after Brian Blessed are unfounded, but he certainly has the pace to flash out and then the only real danger looks in the form of Newinn Rock. Rosney’s “Newinn” runners are always to be respected but he will have to progress significantly to challenge Boomer who has the pace to make-all.

19:49 – Sprint

The clear highlight of the card sees a very competitive affair with the protagonists all matched on their formlines. A case could be made for Call Me Millie as she has the most solid form and will certainly take the beating if she pings out of her favoured trap 6, but she has a woeful draw to overcome. Kizi in trap 3 has genuine sprinting speed but moves off at the bend, and Precious Script is likely to follow him there as he is another looking to course the hare on the wide. If any of those gets a clear run they will take some beating but it is hard to envisage that and thus steps in one of the underrated performances from last week in front of the Sky cameras: Cape Impact. He nosed the camera last week to show his adoring fans that he was up for it and he ran a blinder behind the impressive local Farkland Impact. Farkland Impact had the noteworthy formline of beating my arch nemesis Lil Risky the week before which in houndsight, was a formline that should have been respected more. We can use that in our favour to show how well Cape Impact ran at Newcastle last week in finishing second; he can go one better today in a race that if he clears the enigmatic Comeragh King, is there for the taking.

20:04 – Stayers

Whilst these dogs run over an obscene distance, it is always an exciting time of the year on the eve of the St. Leger and we have 2 serious players in that tournament lining up here tonight. The step up in trip of Blonde Razor has worked the oracle for this recent expensive purchase (unbeaten over a short 6 bends) and he has shown he can go from the front or behind. He will definitely have his supporters but it is hard to ignore the likeability of the young Droopys Posh who caught Swift Keith as a puppy over a short 4 bend trip (an incredibly useful piece of form) and if she can transfer that pace over 6 bends against classier types than she faced on her staying bow, she will take the world of beating over this trip; odds of 10/1 will certainly disappear for the Leger if she does so. In an all-railer affair it is likely to be messy as the dog in 6, Westmead Bertie, is an extremely likeable canine friend of mine but he will be looking for the rail at the bend. Navarone was bought for similar money to Blonde Razor (reportedly 10,000 doggie treats for each), and whilst he has shown sporadic form in minor contests over a stayer’s trip, he lacks the scope these days of either Posh or Razor. Posh could turn into something special over 6 bends and has the opportunity here to demonstrate that.

20:19 – Standard

This is a tough race to call as Aero Tobias and Lode Esteem have similar profiles for me. On his day, Tobias has a different level of pace to Esteem though, and he is fancied here to at least follow that rival round and beat him for overall speed. The interesting runner of the race, Right Touch, has been declared a N/R with the reserve (Born to Survive) being a mid-to-wide sort, further enhancing the chances of Tobias and Esteem. Each of them are normally thrown in the deep-end and whilst us greyhounds can swim, they struggle in quality company; they do not face that here and Tobias can win the match-race.

20:34 – Marathon

This is one of those races where I nearly fell off my sofa when I saw the price of one of the runners. Aayamzabella from her favoured red box, with no early pace in trap 2, after demolishing her rivals when getting the rails last week at Newcastle, is a simple must-bet for those that like to eat doggie treats. Balance Sheet is bred for this absurd distance but Aayamzabella is one of the best marathon runners in the country when she is given an inside draw and whilst she would arguably prefer trap 0, she will have to make do with 1 today and she can fully utilise that. Freedom Cache has pace but is a dog without a distance and this will be stretching his capabilities, particularly against the gallant pace of the self-proclaimed “I Am Beautiful”.

20:49 – Super Standard

Whilst this race has an air of arrogance about it due to it’s title, the standard of it is not that spectacular and it will not take much winning. Hollyoak Oliver has been a precocious boy over the past few weeks but with the slow, middle-moving Glanmire Jet next to him, he can dominate the inside and win this. Frettenham Flyer always churns out a good effort but often milks it when running against classy opposition and Oliver has a tinge of class, albeit often too fleetingly. My colleagues do not want to see Glanmire Jet turn at the first bend anywhere near them.

21:09 – Grand National Final

A stellar cast of hurdlers lines up for the less-gruelling version of a Horse’s toughest test, and the ever-enigmatic Droopys Lorenzo will as ever, be hard to beat if he doesn’t fall. His jumping style leaves a lot to be desired but the hurdles at Sittingbourne are not that hard to negotiate and he can show his brute pace to claim this. Westmead Meteor, the Springbox winner, will need no invitation as he is probably the classiest jumper in the country and can pounce on any mistakes from Lorenzo. It would be wrong to read too much into Lorenzo’s missed break last week as the hare was nearly around the first bend by the time the traps opened (hence the changing of the traps for tonight, it all makes sense now…), and he is normally a pretty reliable trapper. Ricky Holloway is bidding for a unique treble if Meteor can oblige for him but he trains his hurdlers to jump over proper sticks, which these are not quite. Mo Realta Frank is seriously well-drawn with the ever-likeable but sofa-yearning Melanie drawn next to him and he will be a threat if the market leaders make a hash of their jumping.

21:19 – Kent Derby Final

If there is one dog that could be hindered by the change of traps, we will see it in this race as Exocet bids to ping for the third time in succession and make-all. The miraculous healer that is Exocet, who infamously withdrew from the Sussex Cup lame (when favourite after the first round) to appear three days later across the water for the Irish Derby, is undoubtedly as talented on the track as his powers of recovery are off it. The Irish Derby Semi-Finalist will surely not be picked up if he leads: that “if” should probably be a “when”. All things considered however, Droopys Odell could give any dog a run when he secures his rails berth and he has a potentially good draw to claim his beloved rails. I bark potentially because Bridge Bandit on his immediate inner is a course-and-distance specialist and can ping out, but if Odell can lead him, he can give Exocet a race and is more than worth taking a chance on at 4/1. Odell won from a horror draw in 4 in the Semi-Final (some would argue he was lucky in-running but connections must have been happy that he qualified from that draw, let alone win) and he is a serious powerhouse on the rails. Droopys Danneel has a good draw out wide but Odell has more pace for me and Islas Scolari will do his normal race of running on when it is unfortunately, all too late in this class.

Here are the recommendations then:

Droopys Odell – 1 breast of chicken @ 4/1

So there are my thoughts on the card, as ever please tweet or comment and I promise to respond faster than it takes Exocet to recover from lameness! There is no doubting that if he leads he will be seriously tough to beat, but I would not want Odell turning behind me and he can be another love for the Lolly Faithful tonight.