Rendlesham Hurdle 2012

2.45 Haydock

Betfred Goals Galore Hurdle (Registered As The Rendlesham Hurdle Race) Grade 2 (Class 1) (4yo+) Winner £18,509

Advice: 1 pt Restless Harry Insurebet - 2 Places (3/1 Hills), 2 pts Restless Harry to beat Benny Be Good (4/6 Hills)

Cross Kennon: Winner of this last year when taking advantage of a fairly below par Bensalem before even better race at Cheltenham when fourth in World Hurdle; Been out of form since though and hard to fancy.

Restless Harry:  Switch to chasing not actually worked since his romp over hurdles at beginning of the season (jumped poorly on two occasions) but ran decent enough races to make him a serious contender on form now.

Powerstation: Found some of the old sparkle in recent years, running sold races the last time (beaten by class opposition although in weakish races); Handles the heavy ground perfectly so seen stranger results happen.

Benny Be Good: Progressive over hurdles and fences, coming clear second to Dynaste before solid second in chase at Doncaster; Well held last time off 147 last time so that puts a slight dampener on his chances up in class.

Featherbed Lane: Rapidly progressive this season, winning over 2 miles before making successful step up in trip, handling heavy ground much the best at Aintree; Unlucky loser in Lanzarote Hurdle (caught late on the line giving more than a stone to runner up) and has to have his chance, for all that trip’s an unkown (no sure sign that he wants this test).

Kayf Aramis: Third in this last year but lost his form for a while before good efforts in handicap hurdles the last twice; Should go well enough here although no decent efforts in heavy ground for a good while.

Reindeer Dippin: Thrashed by Featherbed Lane two starts back at Aintree; Little disappointing when fourth (laboured) at Haydock but driven clear in quite taking style latest; This demands more but should be staying on relentlessly at the end.

VERDICT: An interesting renewal, if not the best of recent seasons and one where the ground should have a big say. Featherbed Lane has an excellent chance if staying the 3 miles properly as everything else seems set for a big run but he’s not shown he’s crying out for a longer trip and the reliable RESTLESS HARRY, taking a drop in class, could be hard to beat here and looks value to upset the favourite.