In-running / Neil Munro / 01 July 2010 / Leave a comment Free £25 Bet

Betfair's own Neil Munro picks out a trio of horses with betting tactics to match

"Peter Island loves to get an easy lead over six furlongs on fast ground. His record under these conditions is five wins from 22 starts, with many low trades in defeat including six at odds-on. Back in April 2009 he broke the six furlong track record at Leicester so when left to his own devices he really is a speedball."

We all have horses that hold special memories, and for me Lochsong is high on the list. She was an ultra-consistent speedball for Ian Balding, in the famous Jeff Smith colours. She won 15 of her 27 career starts. She is the reason that I love sprints, and have based most of my punting experiences in that area. I didn't back her too many times - she often went off a prohibitive price - but she stimulated me into analysing these races. Lots of people say that sprinters are hard to catch right because they so often found trouble in-running. Well that can be true, but not when they blast off from the front as she did and never see another horse in the race.

Today, I still love analysing a sprint handicap and they are also an interesting area for in-running traders. We talk so much about draw biases for sprint races but just as important is the pace angle. One of the main trading tools I look for is a solitary speedball in the race, or a well-drawn front-runner. So today let's look at some interesting front-runners who, when conditions are right, can give us useful trades backing pre-race and laying in-running.

Bertoliver - Dean Ivory originally had this six-year-old and managed to get four wins out of the son of Bertolini before he moved into Tom Dascombe's yard. Connections would have hoped for more success following a return of just one win and two further placed efforts in 13 starts. During his time with both Ivory and Dascombe Bertoliver was a consistent trail-blazer who seemed to enjoy these tactics. A move to the shrewd Stuart Williams yard, and a change to different tactics appears to have reawakened the winning spirit. Bertoliver was held-up on the Polytrack and then led again when sent for a handicap at Epsom at the beginning of this season. That day he finished third before being held in mid-division for two further efforts. They then took him back to Epsom for the Dash and fired him out to the front again and this time he managed to hold off the fast finishing Hawkeyethenoo to pick up a decent prize. With Williams playing around with tactics he has become harder to trade on, and he may have to come down the handicap to actually win, but I will be getting involved when well drawn running over five furlongs on good ground or faster, especially at Epsom or Chester.

Peter Island - An ultra-consistent front-runner, he has led in his last 18 starts which isn't easy to do with similar horses in competition. Peter Island loves to get an easy lead over six furlongs on fast ground. His record under these conditions is five wins from 22 starts, with many low trades in defeat including six at odds-on. Back in April 2009 he broke the six furlong track record at Leicester so when left to his own devices he really is a speedball. A mark in the 80s does prove tough for him but when he drops into the 70s he generally picks up a race. The visor is also another major factor to look out for, with five of his six turf career wins coming when fitted with the headgear.

Wreningham - We end with another Stuart Williams sprinter, but one who maybe hasn't won as often as his talent warrants. Wreningham has won twice on the all-weather, both at the redundant Great Leighs, but only once on turf. That came earlier in the season at Yarmouth on soft ground which he isn't likely to get in the coming weeks ... well having said that it is the British summer so maybe he will. In his last six defeats he has traded at [1.4], [2.0], [1.4], [2.3], [1.5] and [2.12] so he is running well but struggles to his head in front. He has won off a mark of 59 so his current mark of 60 holds potential. At the moment I am quite happy laying off more than my stake so the field in winning for me but I am sure the Williams yard will tease a victory out of him soon.

Tags: Bertoliver, Ian Balding, Lochsong, Peter Island, Stuart Williams, Wreningham