Thursday Horse Racing Tips: Mark Milligan has a pair of selections over jumps

• Mark has two bets on Thursday

• Headgear should have positive effect on Snipe

• Ivane can get the better of recent winner

• We are now NRNB on the 2025 Grand National

16:32 Warwick - Back Snipe

Snipe has seemingly lacked sharpness in several of his runs this season, but it looks significant that Dan Skelton now adds cheekpieces and that could well liven him up in this 3m handicap chase.

The eight-year-old travelled with plenty of exuberance on the way to a pair of wins last season but has seemed to a race a touch lazily this term and the addition of headgear could well be the key that unlocks a return to winning ways.

Not that he's performed badly in most of his runs this season, but he's taken plenty of stoking up and it would be no surprise were he to bounce back to his best here.

It's also worth noting he's been plying his trade in higher grades than this of late and the class relief should be a bonus, too.

If the headgear has the desired effect, Snipe should take plenty of stopping from his current mark of 127.

While this is only a small-field affair, cases can be made for most of the opposition, with top weight The Doyen Chief heading the dangers.

Alan King's charge was a winner at Kempton last time but does a have a 5lb rise to cope with. Whether he can give the weight away to Snipe remains to be seen.

Peejaybee was clearly not 100% when pulled up last time, but he'll also have a shout if back in the same sort of form that saw him finish second at Market Rasen in January.

17:10 Southwell - Back Ivane

A pair of ex-Irish recruits look the ones to concentrate on in this 2m 4f handicap hurdle, with Ivane fancied to get the better of recent Sedgefield winner Scorsese.

Ivane hadn't always looked the most straightforward when trained by Ciaran Murphy but did little wrong on his debut for the Janes Owen stable at Fontwell last time, going down to one who was something of a handicap snip based on flat form.

The selection wore a tongue tie on his last two starts in Ireland but that was dispensed with at Fontwell and he duly produced one of his best efforts for quite some time, only headed late on and pulling well clear of the third.

He'll take plenty of stopping if able to build on that, though likely favourite Scorsese is sure to have his supporters too.

He's been with Neil Mulholland a little while now (previously trained by Colm Murphy) and finally returned to something like his best with an easy success at Sedgefield last time.

That was clearly expected too as he didn't go unbacked, and it could well be significant that connections are keen to turn him out quickly under a 7lb penalty.

I'm expecting Ivane and Scorsese to have this between them, and hopefully the former can gain the verdict.

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