Daily Tipping / Graham Cunningham / 12 April 2012 /

It's the day when the women of Liverpool dress to kill and men of a certain age sigh wistfully and wish they were young again. Yes, Friday brings Ladies' Day at Aintree and Racing UK analyst Graham Cunningham is hoping the girls (and a few blokes) can offset tanning salon expenses with a couple of live chances at long odds

One of the greatest things about trading on Betfair is the ability to get with a horse at a big price before the tapes go up and save the stake or more besides if the beast in question travels strongly through the race.

Step forward Theatre Guide in Friday's opener at 14:00.

Hand on heart, I simply don't know whether this gelding is good enough to beat a field including the second and fifth from Cheltenham's Supreme Novices' Hurdle along with the smart Captain Conan and the runaway Sandown scorer Oscara Dara.

Darlan's Festival effort makes him the marginal form choice, but the market reflects that and Theatre Guide is a sporting alternative on the back of a very smooth Wincanton success which saw him travel powerfully before easing clear of a subsequent winner to score with plenty in hand.

Colin Tizzard has always rated this gelding highly and that Wincanton win represented a major step forward.

Theatre Guide looks open to bundles of improvement now that he's relaxing better and backing him at long odds with a view to saving the stake and perhaps a bit more at [5.0] looks a very sporting way to start day two.

Arriving at the best trading option in the featured Melling Chase at 15:05 depends on the way you view Finians Rainbow's stamina and Albertas Run's ability to peak yet again after a hard race at Cheltenham.

I'm not among those who think Finian's Rainbow is a pure two miler and if Nicky Henderson's gelding replicates the form he showed to wear down Sizing Europe in the Champion Chase then he'll probably win this.

However, he comes up against one of the modern day legends of spring Festivals in Albertas Run and Jonjo O'Neill's gelding looks the marginal value call to win this for the second time on the back of a typically rugged second in Cheltenham's Ryanair Chase.

Albertas Run did his usual thing at Cheltenham, laying it down from a long way out and refusing to lie down once Riverside Theatre and Medermit came to call up the hill.

Expect a similar ride again from McCoy and, with another drying day all in his favour, this rugged and hugely popular gelding can make sure Finian's Rainbow has to be every bit as good as he looked at Cheltenham in order to score at this longer trip.

Stand by for the usual fun and games over the National fences in the Topham at 15:40.

And stand by for a really bold effort from Little Josh now that he finally gets a chance to tackle these unique obstacles.

There are no prizes for guessing about the tactical nature of this wide open handicap.

In short, the freewheeling Frankie Figg looks bound to blaze the trail on his fourth attempt to land the trophy and the way he lets fly time and again puts extreme pressure on the fencing technique of all his rivals.

Impressive Newbury scorer Triangular looks well equipped on that score, but Little Josh has struck me as an ideal Aintree type for ages now.

Granted, his recent efforts don't inspire at first glance. However, Little Josh has become very well treated of late and ran much better than the bare result suggests in the Ryanair.

If I've read the tactics right Sam Twiston-Davies will allow Frankie Figg to blast away while ensuring Little Josh gets in a smooth rhythm at the head of the chasing pack.

History suggests that Frankie will fade when things get serious. And if that's the case the Little Josh looks a likely lad to pick up the pieces and run a blinder.

Recommended Bets
Back Theatre Guide @ [18.0] and lay off to save the stake at [5.0] in-running in the 14:00
Back Albertas Run @ [4.5] and lay off to save the stake at [2.0] in-running in the 15:05
Back Little Josh @ [11.0] and lay off to save the stake at [4.0] in-running in the 15:40 at Aintree

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