Heads Up: Gulf Of Naples at 9-4 is the value bet for Saturday's racing

Gulf Of Naples (3.30) emerged with plenty of credit, despite having to settle for second in the Queen's Prize on his reappearance and he should arguably be favourite ahead of Shubaat at Ripon on Saturday. Yes the handicapper has had his say by hiking him up 8lb, which seems harsh for second place on the face of things, but the first two home finished a massive seven lengths clear of their rivals and he could easily have improvement still to offer, that having been his first start of the season and just the sixth of his short career. Two miles clearly isn't a problem, nor should soft ground be and in many ways the progressive Gulf Of Naples is highly reminiscent of another progressive son of Dubawi, Fox Hunt, who worked his way through handicaps to Cup races for Johnston last season. Shubaat won easily at Musselburgh on his reappearance and it is interesting that connections have shown such patience with this injury-prone five-year-old, but the Musselburgh contest was nowhere near as competitive as the race in which Gulf Of Naples returned and he is a ludicrous price at 11-10 with Ladbrokes. Take the 9-4 with the same firm or Bet365 about Gulf Of Naples. Rare Bob is the early mover in the Bet365 Gold Cup, but my preference is for Roalco De Farges (3.10) , who has far fewer miles on the clock. Take the 11-1 with Sportingbet if you can get a bet on with them. One runner I would definitely expect to prove popular at Sandown is Tom Du Lys (1.30) in the opener, a horse making his debut for Nicky Henderson after showing good form in France for Bertrand Lefevre. Reports from Seven Barrows suggest this horse is expected to take advantage of what is considered an attractive handicap mark on his British debut and it would appear that Ladbrokes have heard something similar, as they go just 5-1. Take the 7-1 with Betfred/Totesport.