A big swing of the bat at Chester tomorrow....

Tuesday, 5th May 2026

A big swing of the bat at Chester tomorrow….

In ATC today….

…. I bring you my best pick on Day 1 at Chester’s May meeting….

I’m on CITY HOUSE in the 2.05 – up at 33s….

That’s the summary….

…. you’ll find all my reasoning below – as per usual….

Oh…. and if you’re looking for the standout place terms on offer – you’ll find them in the Bet Box below….

Read on….

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A small win is better than any loss….

…. and I won’t grumble about a small betting profit over the weekend….

…. thanks primarily to Mirsky’s win in the Thirsk Hunt Cup….

…. but with Pole Star contributing a bit of place money at Newmarket on Sunday….

Note: Did anybody get paid out place money for Silver Ghost on Friday? Contact: nick.pullen@spapublishinggroup.co.uk

We were close to getting a slightly better overall return with Sir Les Patterson running one place outside the frame at Newmarket on Saturday….

I thought he ran well and I imagine connections are delighted with him….

He’s thought of in some quarters as an out-and-out AW horse….

…. but on Saturday I thought he proved he can do the business on turf….

…. and with a turf rating of 96 compared to 105 on synthetics (he’s been as high as 107) there’s a strong possibility he’s weighted to win a decent pot on the grass this summer….

…. which will help repay a bit more of the 155,000 guineas connections shelled out for him last July….

Thesecretadversary threw his chance away by pulling too hard early on in the 2000 Guineas – but he still managed to finish fifth….

That’s outside the places, of course, and he delivered zero return for backers – but I still reckon he was a fair pick….

…. and he might have gone closer had he behaved early doors….

Like I say, I won’t grumble….

…. the weekend picks finished ahead on the bottom line….

…. and I’d settle for that that every week of the year….

There’s no time to sit and recuperate….

…. not with Chester’s May meeting upon us….

I’m having just the one bet on Day 1 (tomorrow)….

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…. the Earl Grosvenor – Chester – 2.05....

I’m minded to have a big swing of the bat in this one and to get stuck into the 33s about CITY HOUSE….

He’s been in-and-out – probably more out than in to be fair – over the last 12-months….

…. but I note that he was on a mark of 105 when he got back from Bahrain last Spring….

…. and George Scott – his trainer at the time – had no choice but to hand him some pretty tough handicap assignments across the summer in which he didn’t really figure….

He was moved on to Adrian McGuiness in Ireland at the start of this year and – whilst he didn’t beat a single horse home on his first two goes over there – he came to life at the third time of asking….

…. finishing just under 2l behind Sir Les Patterson at Dundalk (who was subsequently raised 8lb to 107) – a run that confirms there’s still something under the bonnet….

After that he was sent across the water to Newcastle on Good Friday to contest the valuable sprint handicap on that card – nothing doing….

…. before showing up at Naas just nine days ago – where I thought he ran better than the bare on-paper result suggests….

He didn’t get a clear run over the 6f – but kept on well once he got some daylight to run into….

He stays 7f and I just think he’s interesting having dropped down the rankings to a mark of 94….

He paid the price for a good run of races in Bahrain and it’s taken time to trim the fat off the mark….

He should be fit after the run at Naas and he could just be a sight more competitive than his big price tag suggests….

…. and he’s not badly drawn in stall 4….

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Now, just to recap….

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That’s all for today….

I’ll be back with more tomorrow….

Meantime – contact me at – nick.pullen@spapublishinggroup.co.uk

And remember – win, lose or draw – enjoy the racing….

Stay tuned….

Against the Crowd