The Monday Review

World Grand Slam of Darts 2018

So it wasn’t to be for our three fancies with Adam Smith-Neale (Group Stage), James Wade (Last 16) and Simon Whitlock (Quarter Final) all exiting the tournament early. The big disappointment was Whitlock who managed to miss 5 match darts against eventual winner Gerwyn Price in a tense quarter final clash. However, our advice to take on MVG at the prices proved fruitful as his bid to win four consecutive titles was ended in the semi-final against Gary Anderson.

The big talking point of the tournament (not including fart-gate!) will no doubt the be the fiery final between Price and Anderson and not just because it was Price’s first major win in the PDC. Price is very much a marmite player but seems to thrive on any hostility that is thrown his way, which he certainly received from the Wolverhampton crowd on Sunday night. You can argue that Price brings it all on himself with every last dart treble getting a fist pump, which although maybe a tad over the top isn’t too dissimilar to MVG. In the closing stages of the final he clearly got Anderson rattled, so much so that at one point it looked as if darts was the last thing on either of their minds with pushing and shoving on the oche. At the end of the day, forgetting all the antics, you have to give Price all the credit for his victory especially being three legs down at two separate stages of the match. We’re certainly hoping for a rematch at the Ally Pally next month!

Cheltenham November Meeting

Friday’s card saw last year’s Cross Country Chase and Grand National hero, Tiger Roll, make his seasonal reappearance but it was Josies Orders who stole the show winning his fourth race over the unique Cross Country fences. He showed great grit and determination after being headed at the last to score by ¾ of a lengths from Fact of the Matter. The horse just seems to love going round here (figures of 111361) and will no doubt be primed at a return to the festival next March. Connections of Tiger Roll must’ve been delighted with their horse considering he was giving away a stone to the winner and almost two stone to the 2nd and 3rd horses. He’ll definitely come on for the run and has to be fancied to regain his crown next March before another tilt at The Grand National in April.

Also on the card was the Steel Plate And Section Novices’ Chase which saw some of last season top hurdlers lining up against each other. Mr Whipped trained by Nicky Henderson was sent off favourite but it was Count Meribel trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies returning to the winners enclosure, a win even more impressive by his jockey, Mark Grant’s, miraculous Houdini act at the second last. Surely a contender for ride of the week?

Saturday’s card featured the Bet Victor Gold Cup which saw Baron Alco, trained by Gary Moore, jump superbly from the front taking the race under son Jamie. However, the horse we took from the race was Rather Be who was still travelling well when brought down 4 from home. It will be interesting to see how he fairs next time out. Performance of the day belonged to First Assignment, trained by Ian Williams, who absolutely bolted in, in the 3 mile Handicap Hurdle, travelling well throughout and winning by 9 lengths.

A special mention must go to 2015 Gold Cup winner Coneygree who returned to the biggest cheers of the day after finishing third in the BetVictor Handicap Chase despite conceding a stone to the eventual winner Rock the Kasbah. Hopefully he can have an injury free campaign and a return to the winners enclosure soon.

Sunday’s big race was the Unibet Greatwood Handicap Hurdle which was won by Brian Ellison’s outsider Nietzsche. However, it was Lalor’s victory in the Racing Post Arkle Trial which took all the headlines, demolishing a quality field including, Defi Du Seuil and Claimantakinforgan, by 7 lengths. The result saw Kaley Woolacott’s charge cut to 7/1 second favourite for the Arkle in March.

Another highlight of Sunday’s card was Palmer Hill’s victory in the Conditional Jockey’s Handicap Hurdle which saw rising star Jonjo O’Neill Jr winning his first race at Cheltenham made even more special that it was for his dad Jonjo! Congratulations to both Jonjos!

Punchestown – Unibet Morgiana Hurdle

Sunday's big race in Ireland was the Morgiana Hurdle which has been dominated by Willie Mullins in the past few seasons. This year’s race was headed by Samcro and Faugheen and also included Sharjah, Wicklow Brave and Tombstone. However, Samcro’s participation was ended after trainer Gordon Elliott’s late decision to withdraw the horse because of the ground. 100% the right thing to do if he wasn’t happy and not quite sure why he has received so much criticism for it?! This left Faugheen as the long odds on favourite to win the race for a second consecutive year but it was the Mullin’s 2nd string Sharjah who caused an upset easily taking victory by a comfortable 7 lengths from Faugheen.

Our big talking point of the race, pre Samcro’s withdrawal, was how short both Samcro and Faugheen were in the market. Ok, the field was not exactly packed with quality but we felt that Samcro still had questions to answer, not just after his defeat last time out but also regarding the trip as he looked like a stayer in the making after his victory in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham last season. With regards to Faugheen, it’s looked for quite some time that 2 miles is now too short for him, proven by his demolition job in last season’s Champion Stayers Hurdle at the Punchestown Festival, and we couldn’t understand why all the money came for him during the week! We certainly hope they take him to the Stayers Hurdle in March and the 12/1 currently being offered by Betfair certainly seems a great each way bet.

Keep your eyes peeled for a Road To Cheltenham preview over the coming weeks.

With yet another international break meaning no top flight football last weekend, we decided to check out what was happening in the National League.

A notoriously tough league to get out of, with only the champions gaining automatic promotion, competition for top spot is fierce. A whole host of former league clubs find themselves battling it out in an attempt to win back their league status. Aldershot, Barnet, Chesterfield, Dagenham & Redbridge, Halifax, Hartlepool, Leyton Orient and Wrexham have all plied their trade at a higher level.

Last season saw Macclesfield hit a run of form at the perfect time to run away with the division title, losing only 8 games on their way to picking up 92 points, 10 clear of their nearest rivals Tranmere who themselves ended up going up via the play offs.

We are going to concentrate on the teams currently occupying the top 7 spots in the National League. As mentioned the champions are automatically promoted, with the teams finishing 2nd and 3rd earning a home tie in a one legged play off semi final. Teams finishing 4th & 7th will play off for one of the semi final spots, whilst the teams finishing 5th and 6th compete for the other semi final spot.

Leyton Orient currently top the table, in what is their second season in the National League. Last season was a steep learning curve for the East London club who failed to show any consistency and ended up finishing 13th. Former Spurs player Justin Edinburgh took over from Steve Davis almost a year ago and the team have improved massively since his appointment. The O’s have only lost one of their opening 20 league games this season (A 1-0 home defeat to Sutton United), they look solid at the back, only conceding 13 times so far. At the other end goals have seemed easy to come by, scoring 41 times already this season. The key to this season will be whether they can keep hold of their players in the next transfer window, with strike partnership Macauley Bonne and Josh Koroma getting plenty of interest from league clubs.

Salford City occupy 2nd place after this weekend’s games, just a point behind Orient. Famously owned by the class of 92 and bankrolled by billionaire Peter Lim, they were many people’s pre-season favourites to be champions, despite only getting promoted from the National League North last season. The signing of Adam Rooney from Aberdeen was a real signal of their intent this season, he already has 15 league goals to his name and is proving to be worth every penny of the reported £4k a week wage. With money clearly not an issue, the club will be able to strengthen in the January transfer window should they need to and you’d have to think twice backing against them to gain their 4th promotion in 5 years. Salford’s next two games are away at Solihull Moors, followed by a home tie with Harrogate Town.

Wrexham always seem to start the season well before fading away, but this season’s team seems to have a bit more grit about them, only conceding 12 times so far and only 4 of those have come at home. Wrexham have always been regarded as too big for this division, but this season marks their 11th since relegation from the Football league. Goals haven’t been as easy to come by as you’d expect for a team in the top 3, but with that watertight defence holding strong and big crowds cheering them on at the Racecourse Ground, you have to think they will be in the mix come May. A huge game at home to Leyton Orient this weekend looks like a real 6 pointer.

Solihull Moors Yes that’s right Solihull Moors. Not many people had predicted such a good start from the midlands based club, but after 20 games they find themselves sitting in 4th position. A comfortable 3-0 away win over Braintree Town this weekend was shown live on BT sports and you could see why they are doing well, a physical side that can still play some nice football at times. Games against other top teams maybe where Solihull’s season is decided, only an opening day win over Wrexham and a draw with Sutton have produced any points.

Harrogate Town are another of this season’s surprise packages after gaining promotion alongside Salford City from the National League North via the play offs. Manager Simon Weaver (Son of owner Irving Weaver) has his team playing a nice passing style of football and they can beat anyone on their day. They were one of the two remaining unbeaten teams at the end of September, finally losing that record to Leyton Orient who beat them 3-0 at Wetherby Road. You have to wonder if there is the strength in depth needed to mount a serious title challenge. With only 20 first team players, they will need to stay injury free for the upcoming festive period.

AFC Fylde have started where they left off last season. A solid team who finished 7th last term, eventually losing out in the play offs to Boreham Wood. Any team that has Danny Rowe will have a chance, he is lethal at this level and already has 12 goals this season, following on from his 24 in the 2017/18 campaign, which saw him end up as the league’s Joint top scorer with Tranmere’s Andy Cook.

Sutton United are a team that nobody likes to face. A big physical side, who really like to put themselves about, couple that with a plastic pitch and a trip to Gander Green Lane is a nightmare trip for any team. You have to wonder if Sutton will have the firepower to mount a realistic title challenge this season, goals have been somewhat lacking with top scorer Craig Eastmond only notching 5 times so far. Sutton took part in the Scottish Challenge Cup this season eventually going out to Irish side Bohemians. An FA cup replay also awaits this week and with a 9 point gap to the top already opening up, another cup run may not help their league form.