It must be barked that in all of my many dog years, this has to be the classiest and most intriguing St. Leger that I can remember! The field of my colleagues is truly breathtaking and I cannot remember a better one over the past 5 years! The competition winners in this tournament could create a trophy cabinet nearly as big as mine; the Derby Runner-Up is accompanied by the winners of the Regency, the Yorkshire St. Leger, Sunderland Grand Prix, Great North Run, TV Trophy, Kent St. Leger and the Golden Jacket (apologies to my colleagues if I have missed one). This mouthwatering competition is set to be a classic and before I look at the individual heats, I will give my thoughts on the value in the Antepost market for the Lolly Faithful.

The top of the market is very, very strong. My favourite colleague in training, Farloe Tango, just about holds market favouritism and that is fully justified as the famous human chant of “He Wins When He Wants” is in reference to this phenonemal dog. He simply has a different gear to any other hound in training (which he showed in his Great North Run win) and we know that he runs Wimbledon exceptionally well as he was an unlucky loser in the Derby Quarter-Final. He is reluctantly passed over as he normally does it the hard way (unless he fancies leading) and so will inevitably need luck in this 4 round tournament: ignore him at any stage of a race at your peril, even if he stops for a doggie treat in the restaurant. It is the far more logical conclusion to side with Fear Emoski who has left all in her wake since stepping up to six bends. The Regency and Yorkshire St. Leger winner has won 11 of her last 12 races and will take some beating as she has proven she can lead most fields with her decent 4 bend pace, and she can come behind if needs be: she is a winner. At 5/1, it proves the quality of this field and for such a consistent and admirable bitch, it is a price that cannot be ignored.

Musical Gaga is too short in the betting for me as whilst she is the undoubted queen of the marathon scene, she will probably be denied her normal early lead over this shorter trip and will need to find luck in running. She certainly did not get that luck in the Great North Run semi-final as she ran into all sorts of bother; there are so many contenders in this competition that she cannot afford to give them a start and a beating. Airlie Impact and Hather George both have stamina issues to answer over this trip, but their undoubted class and ability have them placed correctly in the market. Droopys Posh, Blonde Razor and Moody Paul are the newcomers to the staying scene and all of them are hugely respected due to their progressive profiles, but it is hard to envisage that they could get to the level of Fear Emoski this year.

One colleague of mine that has slipped under the radar and has definitely shown the form of Emoski is White Soks Roks. Many of the Lolly Faithful will be well aware of the fact that I mentor young Soks and he duly obliged for us in the Golden Jacket by winning for us at 20/1. His running action and superb early is a joy to watch and his power is capable of landing this competition. He has learnt to type with his paws like myself, and so he barks to me that he is fully fit and raring to go after some lukewarm performances in Ireland recently. It is always a tough task to compete in top quality races every time you run and put in your best performance (although it never bothered me) and losses for him to the likes of wonder-bitch Razldazl Marilyn in Ireland are excusable. Soks has been preparing for this tournament since his Golden Jacket success earlier in the year and. He can utilise his potentially useful draws as one of the few classy wide seeds in the competition to reach the final at least. His huge following from the Emerald Isle will no doubt be over to cheer him on from track-side and he likes to entertain the crowds with trap-to-line successes: he will not disappoint them or the Lolly Faithful, I am sure of that!

Heat 1 – 19:25

The Sunderland Grand Prix heroine Calzaghe Lilly is a warm-order but she can get boxed in all too often and so she will need to be on her toes here. My colleague Midway Nick is unexposed at the highest level but he does have a lovely draw to work from to steal a cheap lead and then show the pace that saw him finish just the 11 lengths behind Farloe Tango last time out: that is still quick believe me!

Heat 2 – 19:39

A fascinating contest here can show why Fear Emoski is going to be the bitch to beat in this tournament. Charlie Lister has three really classy competitors here in Emoski, Airforce Diva and Hather George and whoever wins this will deserve it! Airforce Diva managed the unique feat of hurdling a fellow competitor in her last race on Sky and she is a very talented Irish bitch, but it must be remembered that she has ran awfully around Wimbledon whenever she has been here before; 6 bends or no 6 bends, she does not like this circuit. Hather George is an admirable sort who always gives his all. Whilst he has proven at Sheffield that he stays 6 bends, this extra distance may perhaps find him out; if he does get the trip then he will give Emoski a real race.

Heat 3 – 19:54

So here he is. Farloe Tango. Will he drop to the back? Will he ping out and make-all? Will he stop half way around? Dog knows. One thing that I do know is that he has electric pace and he can win this if he wants to. Droopys Posh was a lovely puppy with a real gutsy attitude, but I think her size has meant she has struggled against her adult competitors and she will have to have her wits about her to move through a field; she is undoubtedly quick and gets the trip. Ballymac Cryan could run well at a huge price as the old boy is a credit to his connections.

Heat 4 – 20:10

Here we see the weakest of the heats but also the best value for a heat winner: Mollys Hope. She is often pitched in at the deep end and consistently produces solid enough efforts that when she is dropped back in class, she normally prevails. It really is a race there to be won and we fully Hope that she obliges.

Heat 5 – 20:26

This is an intriguing encounter because whilst Sidaz Dippy is perhaps the quickest in the field, she does struggle to win her races and cannot be considered at the price. The Kent St. Leger winner Aayamzalad is performing at the top of his game and whilst his lack of early will eventually be exposed against classier opponents, he can continue his good form and is a good price to demonstrate his decent middle pace.

Heat 6 – 20:42

It is perhaps to oft barked by me that Aayamzabella would prefer trap 0 but is is definitely a proven strategy to back her when she has her beloved rails, which she does here. The red box (or slow trappers inside when drawn middle) is imperative for her and this is what she has. She has set two track records in her last two runs (admittedly over marathon trips) and if she is given any sort of room, she will be very tough to peg back after she delivers her devastating early up the rails. The Derby Runner-Up Airlie Impact is an interesting entrant to the competition, but he has too many question marks over him for me. How much that Derby campaign actually took out of him is a huge negative and the fact that his connections have rightly or wrongly not stepped him up in trip before, must show that they have concerns that he will get the 6 bends: especially this long one! Bubbly Swallow always enjoys being in front of the cameras but has relinquished her lead to readily in recent times. Boherna Bridge will need to lead but his presence means that “I Am Beautiful” can follow him round and beat him.

Heat 7 – 20:58

Musical Gaga has made a mockery of the already ridiculous distance that is a marathon trip, and her stepping down to 6 bends is not really a massive concern here; it will be later in the tournament I feel. Blonde Razor is sharp over this trip and whilst he is hugely progressive, Gaga can pounce on any falterings in his stamina. Killieford Khali is one that always comes high, wide and not-so-handsome-as-me and can get into it if the two railers get involved in a duel.

Heat 8 – 21:15

White Soks Roks has told me from his kennel that he may need the run to bring on his fitness here, but it is still hard to get away from our hero. His sprint trial was hugely likeable and he can power into the first bend to give these a real test: a test I don’t think they can pass. Moody Paul is respected as he blasted clear of his rivals over a similar trip at Hove recently, but he was noticeably tiring in the dying strides and I think Soks can tire less than him and win this. It should be a great race!

So, here are the recommendations:

White Soks Roks – 1 dog bone broken in half @ 25/1

There we are then! Those are my thoughts on this epic renewal of the 6-bend pinnacle of the year! As ever, please tweet me if you have any comments and myself or our hero @WhiteSoksRoks can bark back at you with a response! It should be a fascinating competition, but as the Lolly Faithful know all too well, you should Fear the Soks.