Aintree & Sandown Tingle Creek Chase day tips: Free Value Bet preview for Saturday December 5

Aintree & Sandown recommended bets

1pt e.w. Smooth Stepper in 1.30 Aintree at 25/1 (1/5 1,2,3,4,5)

1pt e.w. Sametegal in 3.15 Aintree at 11/1 (1/5 1,2,3,4,5)

1pt win Benson in 3.35 Sandown at 10/1

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Smooth operator to step up in Becher Chase?

SMOOTH STEPPER (25/1 Betfair, Paddy Power 1/5 1,2,3,4,5) is fancied to give trainer Alex Hales the biggest winner of his career in Saturday’s William Hill Becher Handicap Chase at Aintree.

This horse has already provided Hales with success at Grade 3 level having won the Grand National Trial at Haydock in February, while For Pleasure struck for the yard in Cheltenham’s Grade 2 Sky Bet Supreme Trial at the November meeting last month.

But victory over the famous fences in the Becher Chase this weekend would undoubtedly take the relatively small yard (32 horses listed as ‘in training’ on their website) to new levels in terms of exposure and Smooth Stepper certainly looks made of the right stuff.

The Haydock win was a big day for the 11-year-old but wasn’t a flash in the pan by any means. On bare form he’d by all accounts posted even better staying performances when winning at Newcastle and Kelso early in 2018, while he looked to produce a similar level of ability when fifth on last month’s comeback run at Sandown.

That was only a veterans’ handicap but it was a seriously competitive one and it’s worth noting the first three home all had at least one recent outing under their belts.

For Smooth Stepper – who was sent off at 50/1 under a big weight – it smacked of a pipe-opener and in that sense it seemed to serve the purpose really nicely.

He made the odd mistake, which you can excuse first time out around Sandown, and was outpaced when front-running winner Step Back kicked on again after dictating terms, but stayed on well on the run-in after another blunder at the last fence.

The handicapper has politely eased him 2lb to a mark of 142, just 6lb higher than the perch from he had to compete (3lb out of the handicap) in the Grand National Trial. The Haydock form is clearly strong, having beaten a thriving Lord Du Mesnil, Yala Enki and The Two Amigos, and he’s only 4lb worse off with the middle of that trio despite beating him over 20 lengths.

The National fences are clearly a new test, but the giant son of Alflora is built to jump houses and an extreme test on deep ground is precisely what he’s after – he’s been to Aintree twice before (Mildmay) and pulled-up but I’m not convinced it’s anything to do with the configuration of the track, rather that the ground was officially good on both occasions and he’s far happier when the mud is flying.

I was also keen on Give Me A Copper when first looking at the race last month, and I’ve not gone particularly cold on him, but if there’s one lurking even lower down the weights with a better chance then it could be Coo Star Sivola.

He also likes soft ground and he’s really well-handicapped based on his 2018 Ultima victory off 5lb higher, but there just wasn’t quite enough in his Bangor reappearance to recommend backing him too.

In fact, he appeared to cut out quite quickly when asked for an effort and will need to come on quite a lot for the run, his first since the 2019 Cheltenham Festival.

Where's the value in the Grand Sefton at Aintree?

Hales has one of the market leaders in the William Hill Grand Sefton Handicap Chase in Huntsman Son, who also seems to be getting better with age following his easy Wetherby defeat of Two For Gold.

He’s been hit 9lb and isn’t necessarily handicapped out of it but I prefer the Nicholls-trained SAMETEGAL (11/1 BetVictor 1/5 1,2,3,4,5), another 11-year-old who retains plenty of zest for the jumping game.

He travelled like a demon in the aforementioned veterans’ event at Sandown last month, ultimately being beaten three lengths in third after stumbling his way over the final fence.

He’s never really convinced as a three-miler anyway and he’s going to love the drop back to this intermediate trip having been third to Gas Line Boy in this race three years ago.

Following a recent 1lb rise in the weights, he’s still only 2lb lower than that fine course effort in 2017 but the addition of cheekpieces look to have sparked him right back to form and much softer ground in the north west won’t be an issue at all this weekend.

Nicholls has won the Sefton three times in the last seven years and while impressive Aintree winner Modus is the likely first-string, Bryony Frost looks certain to get a great spin out of Sametegal who rates an each-way bet at 10/1 and bigger with plenty of firms offering five places.

What are the best bets on Tingle Creek Chase card at Sandown?

There are some brilliant horses declared at Sandown and it’s hoped there isn’t too much more rain that would take the chase course towards the seriously testing conditions on the hurdles track.

I’m in no rush to take on Altior in the Betfair Tingle Creek Chase and will happily watch on with interest while nothing has been missed in the betting for a warm edition of the Planteur At Chapel Stud Henry VIII Novices’ Chase.

The Betfair Exchange Back And Lay London National Handicap Chase would normally offer up a strong betting opportunity but I’ve always been a fan of Cloudy Glen and he looks a well-handicapped favourite in a seven-runner field in spite of an 11lb rise for beating Christmas In April at Fontwell.

BENSON (10/1 bet365) has some unfinished business at Sandown and he’s one I’m dead keen to back in the Betfair Exchange December Handicap Hurdle as I’m far from certain we’ve been seeing the best of him in recent victories at Hereford.

He’s scrambled home in a maiden and a novice event there over the past couple of months and consequently doesn’t look that well treated from a mark of 127 on handicap debut, if taken at face value.

But the horse has only had four starts over hurdles in his life and there’s a strong suspicion he’s been gaining some valuable experience before being pitched back into stronger company, something that won’t come as a complete shock to him given how he was campaigned last term.

After winning a Market Rasen bumper, Benson finished fourth in a hot race of that type won by Israel Champ at Ascot, and then came the slightly surprising hurdling debut when tackling the Listed Contenders Hurdle at Sandown, where he loomed up on the outside as a totally unconsidered 66/1 chance two out, only to all but refuse and unseat Sean Bowen.

It was a seriously eye-catching run and although he went on to be well held in the Dovecote at Kempton on his next outing in February, the horse is being brought along nicely this term following wind surgery in the summer.

Trainer Dr Richard Newland also adds a first-time tongue-tie for good measure on Saturday. Newland doesn’t reach for that weapon too often but four of his last seven runners sporting first-time tongue-ties have won. The sole Sandown runner he’s had with a 't1' on the racecard was Act Of Kalanisi, who ran a big race when third at 16/1 here back in 2012.

Despite the ground, this race will be a strongly-run affair with Totterdown, Rosie And Millie and Let The Heirs Walk set to battle for early supremacy, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Benson step forward considerably in relation to the form he’s been showing in trappy events so far through the autumn.

Posted at 1600 GMT on 04/12/20

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