Hugh Taylor

Published 9:01 & 9:35 - all selections online

AFRAJ created a very favourable impression when coming from last to first at Kempton on her latest start, preserving her unbeaten record on the all-weather in the process, and if she’s in the same form she’ll be hard to beat in the 7f fillies’ handicap at Southwell (6.30).

She was still disputing last place inside the final 2f at Kempton in a race that had been run at an ordinary pace, but she produced a telling kick to surge past her rivals at a track where such tactics aren’t easy to pull off.

She settled better on that occasion, having been too keen on her three previous starts on turf this year, and she should be helped in that regard here with plenty of pace in the line-up.

Inside Story has shaped very well on each of her two recent runs at Wolverhampton and looks sure to be winning again on the all-weather soon, but a 2lb rise looks wholly inadequate for Afraj given the manner of her win at Kempton, and if she can repeat that form here, she’ll have a big chance.

DANCE OF ANGELS presumably hasn’t been the easiest to train and she has been dismissed in the betting for the 5f handicap at Southwell (8.00), but if she settles, she might go well on handicap debut.

She shaped with promise up to a point on her three qualifying starts, and did too much too soon on her seasonal debut over this course and distance in April, pulling her way into a share of the lead with She’s Got A Brother (who went on to run very well in a couple of hot sprint handicaps) before fading.

Having been sent off at single-figure odds in all three starts in maidens and novices, Dance Of Angels is the rank outsider dropped to class 5 for her handicap debut. She’s entitled to need the run after another long absence, but the stable are more than capable of getting one ready after a break, and if she settles in the early stages she might outrun her odds.

HUGH'S BEST BETS (scale 1-5 points)

6.30 SOUTHWELL

1pt win AFRAJ (4-1 Coral, Ladbrokes, 7-2 & 100-30 general)

8.00 SOUTHWELL

1pt win DANCE OF ANGELS (40-1 Betfair Sportsbook, Paddy Power, Sky Bet, 33-1 general)

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