Banbridge to land King George crown for Joseph O’Brien
Ladbrokes King George VI Chase (Kempton, St Stephen’s Day, 2.30pm)
Banbridge, 5/1 (Ladbrokes, Sky Bet)
A strong raiding party will head across the Irish Sea for the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase on St Stephen’s Day and Banbridge is rated the pick.
Joseph O’Brien’s charge has already proven himself a good traveller, scoring twice at Cheltenham, landing a Grade One novice chase at Aintree and beating Pic d’Orhy at this venue back in January.
Stepping up to three miles should be no problem judged on that course victory and the way he kept on strongly to win the Martin Pipe race over hurdles at the 2022 Festival.
Banbridge was below par on his seasonal reappearance at Navan but ran a cracker when pushing Energumene hard in the Hilly Way at Cork until carried right and unseating his rider at the final fence.
There will be no concerns over ground conditions and this well-tested eight-year-old may just be that little bit more battle-hardened than some promising young rivals.
Better looks to have brilliant Day ahead at Leopardstown
Racing Post Long Distance Novice Chase (Leopardstown, St Stephen’s Day, 2.20pm)
Better Days Ahead, 13/8 (Paddy Power)
Gordon Elliott looks to have a stranglehold on the feature event on the St Stephen’s Day card at Leopardstown with three of the four runners in the Racing Post Long Distance Novice Chase.
All three of his are unbeaten over fences and strong cases can be made for each of the trio.
The vote goes to Better Days Ahead in the three-miler with the Milan gelding looking like the type that can reach higher heights over fences than he did over timber.
He showed a good level over hurdles to be fair, winning the Martin Pipe at Cheltenham and finishing third in Grade One company to finish his season.
The six-year-old had a progressive profile over the smaller obstacles and can live up to his name as his future appears to be ahead of him.
On his chase debut at Navan last month he lowered the colours of Supreme Novices’ winner Slade Steel when both made their debuts over fences.
That was a noteworthy performance and even though the runner-up has been beaten again since it was a good effort.
Going up in trip now will suit Better Days Ahead and he is fancied to claim a top level success on just his second chase outing.
Alexander the great can fire Newcastle to Christmas success
Premier League
Newcastle to beat Aston Villa and Alexander Isak to score, 31/20 (Bet Victor)
AFTER a sticky run of form, Eddie Howe’s Magpies seem to be flying high, helped in no small part by the brilliant Alexander Isak hitting his goalscoring traps, with six in his last four league outings.
The Toon have been inconsistent at home this term but have saved their best for the big games with a raucous St James’s Park crowd at their backs, and a clash with Aston Villa has to be classed a big one as both sides are in the European shake-up.
Newcastle have beaten Arsenal and Spurs at home and drawn with Liverpool – in a thriller – and Manchester City, while Unai Emery’s Villans haven’t won on the road in the league for over two months.
Howe’s boys can grab a victory here, which is generally a 10/11 shot, but throw in the red-hot Isak to score in a home success.
Scoring aces could feast on goals in holiday period
Cole Palmer, Alexander Isak, Chris Wood and Mo Salah all to score, 14/1 (Paddy Power)
THE post-Christmas round of Premier League fixtures usually brings a load of goals, with 39 scored in the 10 matches last season, and it is worth an interest in four of the division’s top marksmen getting on the scoresheet this week.
Chris Wood got a hat-trick at Newcastle last St Stephen’s Day and will be relishing getting stuck into a makeshift Tottenham defence when they travel to high-flying Nottingham Forest on the back on conceding six at home to Liverpool.
Cole Palmer, meanwhile, scored the winner when Chelsea last beat Thursday’s opponents Fulham and he has been in fine scoring form, with the Blues looking to get back to winning ways after drawing a blank at Everton.
The case for Isak has been laid out above, while Salah could lead a hapless Leicester defence a merry dance on Thursday night and might also be worth a look at 10/1 to score a hat-trick with Boylesports.
Huge talent Littler closing in on perfection
Paddy Power World Darts Championship
Luke Littler to hit a 9-darter, 3/1 (William Hill)
THE boy wonder of the arrows was in tears after his opening win over Ryan Meikle at Ally Pally on Saturday night, having turned in a very average display for three sets before hitting a record-breaking three-dart average of over 140 in the fourth.
Perhaps the tears were in response to missing double 12 for the perfect 9-darter for the fifth time in the last couple of months on TV, but with matches getting longer – he resumes against Ian White in the third round and is a 1/25 chance to progress – the opportunities will continue to add up for Littler, who has achieved the perfect leg four times already in 2024.
A powerhouse of a scorer when he’s in his rhythm, the treble 20 takes a barrage so there are bound to be more opportunities and the 9-darter could easily happen at least once before the Sid Waddell Trophy is handed out on January 3.
