General Chat

[Many Clouds]

Don't EVER give out Football tips but my team Bristol City on Sky 5.30 KO. Our CH Rob Atkinson has been in very good form since coming back from injury and has scored in 2 of last 3 with other chances as well. He is a general 14/1 chance to score Anytime , as low as 11/1, but is a HUGE 25/1 with Betfair. That shouldn't be missed.

30/1 now. Iv had a little dabble at that cheers for highlighting. Will be cheering him and Brizzle on.

[Captain Chris]

Yeah I guess a middle ground could be found but it would still be easy for the big yards to get a novice out early, run in five races, and still conceal their true ability come Cheltenham. Maybe second season novices could be the exception.

I'm very much in the "ban novices from handicaps" camp and wouldn't limit it to the festival either. Putting on a proper novice handicap programme would be exciting and there could be plenty of valuable events. I'd solve the 2nd season novice issue by informing trainers that their horse is either a novice or not based on their first race of the year. Run in a novice chase/hurdle = novice (so banned from open handicaps), choose to go down the open route and you're not allowed in novice chases all year.

A sales race would be quite exciting. Especially if it took place the day after the sale and we'd be able to judge the value of the purchases straight away

[robith]

Tony Keenan's latest piece has some really quite wonderous work on Mullins at Punchestown. Essential reading imo

https://www.attheraces.com/blogs/irish-angle/20-april-2022/fairyhouse-rewind-and-punchestown-preview

[MTR]

Sandown on Saturday

4 in the G2 Oaksey Chase
5 in the G1 Celebration Chase
4 in the G2 Select Hurdle

Absolutely shocking

[Irish Rugby]

Sandown on Saturday

4 in the G2 Oaksey Chase
5 in the G1 Celebration Chase
4 in the G2 Select Hurdle

Absolutely shocking

Not too dissimilar to last year, and 2019. The jumps meeting here in late April always does feel like an after show party. The party being Aintree. Haven't seen the decs yet but how many of those 13 runners are Irish what with prize money as well as being so close to Punchestown?

[Benjy23]

Not exactly high quality small fields either are they.

Even the B365 is a slightly disappointing field imo.

[Splinterboy82]

Evening all. I’ve got 4 Reserved enclosure flexi tickets for Punchestown next week. Basically you can go any day with 1 ticket. So individually for 4 days or 2 on 2 days or group of 4 on 1 day, however you like. I can’t make it due to work & family commitments. These are currently selling at €50 each but I got my discounted so happy to sell all 4 at face value of €100.

Gutted I can’t be there but thought I’d pop on here first in case anybody is going & wants an honest cheap set of tickets?

Cheers

[HoldenTheReins]

In regards to free bets, do you place them as you get them if there's no expiry or chip away during the flat season on ones you fancy?

[Ice]

In regards to free bets, do you place them as you get them if there's no expiry or chip away during the flat season on ones you fancy?

I personally use mine as i get them.

[BarrowNH01]

In regards to free bets, do you place them as you get them if there's no expiry or chip away during the flat season on ones you fancy?

i usually use them straight away as the way i build a book always means i have a few horses to be chipping away at.

[HoldenTheReins]

I personally use mine as i get them.

i usually use them straight away as the way i build a book always means i have a few horses to be chipping away at.

Do you use them for fancied horses, cover, life changers or all of them?

[Ice]

Do you use them for fancied horses, cover, life changers or all of them?

Virtually always singles, usually add a fiver to the skybet free fiver as well. So far backed Honeysuckle, Flooring porter, a plus tard and Galopin Des Champs with the free bets and will stick with those for a while then look for a couple of others to add.

[BarrowNH01]

Do you use them for fancied horses, cover, life changers or all of them?

Just fancied horses really, i mainly use free bets to cover horses but will use cash if i think a price is going to shorten for any reason. All Life changers, yankees etc will mainly be cash or the smaller free bets

[Odin]

In regards to free bets, do you place them as you get them if there's no expiry or chip away during the flat season on ones you fancy?

Varies for me.

At one point last season I had 24 free bets on Sky just waiting to be used. Currently got 5 I think, but I bet to get them every week as part of my 'fun' betting. Paddy ones obviously have expiry so I use immediately. New to this year, they will either go on a Cheltenham horse or any winnings from a bet I place that weekend will go towards the Cheltenham fund as a 'roll up win' - I'll explain on my diary when I get it started this weekend (hopefully). With Sky, I use them to boost any bets I deem appropriate (e.g. I've got 2pts on the BTB/An Tobar RAB, 1pt of which is free). Last year I did a roll up with Dolos at Sandown and JWM (Bally) as I didn't have him covered for that which was half cash, half free. Just depends where I feel they are best used - I ended up using a lot of them as part of handicap cross double bets or lucky 15s at the last festival. I always add some form of cash to them on Sky though, should probably start doing that with Paddy as well, just to make sure there's some personal risk there

[Stormez]

Varies for me.

At one point last season I had 24 free bets on Sky just waiting to be used. Currently got 5 I think, but I bet to get them every week as part of my 'fun' betting. Paddy ones obviously have expiry so I use immediately. New to this year, they will either go on a Cheltenham horse or any winnings from a bet I place that weekend will go towards the Cheltenham fund as a 'roll up win' - I'll explain on my diary when I get it started this weekend (hopefully). With Sky, I use them to boost any bets I deem appropriate (e.g. I've got 2pts on the BTB/An Tobar RAB, 1pt of which is free). Last year I did a roll up with Dolos at Sandown and JWM (Bally) as I didn't have him covered for that which was half cash, half free. Just depends where I feel they are best used - I ended up using a lot of them as part of handicap cross double bets or lucky 15s at the last festival. I always add some form of cash to them on Sky though, should probably start doing that with Paddy as well, just to make sure there's some personal risk there

Do the weekly free bets off Sky have an expiry date or not?