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Brickfield Class looks a good Pall Mall bet

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Darrell Williams looks at the latest heats for Tuesday's Pall Mall Final...

Oxford serves up the heats of the Pall Mall tonight - the final is live on Sky Sports a week on Tuesday - and the thirty six runner stake looks as competitive as any of the handicaps being run at Cheltenham this week. Incidentally, for those at the Festival and with stamina to burn - that's if the ten races at Cheltenham aren't enough(!) - a visit to the Cowley circuit could just yield a few vital form clues. For everyone else, check out the various live web feeds for coverage via your PC.

Bob Gilling is best known for his long standing work as a promoter of British Breeding, but if my theory is right, the ever popular veteran handler could just be celebrating a big race winner in twelve days time courtesy of Brickfield Class. A prolific winner, who would give any rival a run for their money in terms of strike rate - he scored no fewer than twenty three Open race wins last year - Gilling's charge does most of his winning at his home track of Reading, where he was a finalist in last autumn's Masters. Currently enjoying a run of ten wins in his last twelve outings, he is however three from three at Oxford, claiming the Oxfordshire Trophy in one of the quickest recent times for the 450m trip last back end, while a recent five length beating of Ronnies Hustle the other week confirmed his current well being. While layers have not been as generous as I might have hoped for, the three year old nevertheless looks more than worthy of the main selection and a relatively straightforward first round heat should pose few problems.

Spears Tarquynn, the main beneficiary of Barnfield On Air's defeat at Hove a week ago, is another greyhound enjoying a lucrative spell at the moment. Interestingly enough, he filled the runners-up spot behind Brickfield Class in that Oxfordshire Trophy final, and a trawl through his Hove form in particular confirms last week's 2964 run was far from a one-off. Claude Gardiner's runner warrants at least a saver, although unfortunately last week's run has done little to hide his current form, resulting in again a slightly restrictive price.

Of the other market leaders, Milldean Flash, beaten joint favourite in the Arc final, is a classy greyhound on his day - he was also runner-up in the Classic Shield at Romford just before Christmas, but a lack of Oxford form is unlikely to be seen as a positive. He also faces an interesting rival in his heat (9.50) in the shape of Love Tiger, whose winning time at Hove last week on his British debut was only marginally slower than that clocked by Spears Tarquynn. Debbies Choice, also in that race, would be massively overpriced on last year's peak form, and while he has had little racing in the last six months, a fast trial suggests he is not without a chance of surprising a few people. Others to keep an eye on at bigger odds include Droopys Sheridan, whose best sprinting form in Ireland could also make him a candidate, while Arc fifth Arthurs Joy, a semi-finalist in this race last year could also have been under-estimated.