Nendrum bids for Musselburgh repeat

● Thomson’s charge hit by weight hike ● Henderson’s Divine Spear looks strong

Nendrum returns to the scene of last month’s romp in the most valuable race on the card at Musselburgh today.

Sandy Thomson’s Greenlaw raider faces just four rivals in the In Play Betting at 188Bet Novices’ Handicap Hurdle as he bids to defy a hike in his handicap mark.

“He’s gone up stone for his win and he wasn’t beaten far into second when we ran him under a penalty at Catterick about a week later,” Thomson said. “That was a month ago and I’d say he is much better going right-handed and the two times he’s been to Musselburgh have produced an impressive win and an improved third the time before that when he wasn’t 100 per cent.

“We’ve had to be very patient with him in trying to get him settled as he is very headstrong. Jamie Hamilton gets on well with him and we’ve got ourfingerscrossedforanother big run.”

Nendrum’s rivals include Lucinda Russell pair Ask The Tycoon, ridden by Derek Fox, and Tom Willmott-partnered Hey Listen.

The former drops back to two miles for his handicap debut while rising star Wilmott remains stuck on requiring one more winner to lose his 10lb claim – a sizeable allowance that only applies

0 Trainer Lucinda Russell saddles two in oppostion to Nendrum. when he rides horses trained by Russell.

Nicky Henderson’s Divine Spear bids to extend his unbeaten record over fences to three in the 188Bet mobile Novices’ Chase.

The Seven Barrows gelding, whose trainer has a 30 per cent strike-rate at the East Lothian venue, was sent off a shortpriced favourite for his wins at Catterick and Ascot in November and December.

Divine Spear is among the possibles for the JLT Chase at next month’s Cheltenham Festival and it is perhaps telling that Henderson has sent him on the long trip north. The trainer usually heads to the East Lothian track in search of better ground and Divine Spear is a runner who appears to turn in his best efforts when conditions are not too deep.

In that win at Ascot before Christmas, he was seen to good effect on soft ground, producing an excellent round of jumping and looking for all the world a horse who will make his mark in good company eventually.

At Lingfield, Red Verdon is the class act on show in the Betway Conditions Stakes.

The Ed Dunlop-trained fiveyear-old was most unlucky not to pick up a big prize in his three-year-old season, finishing sixth in the Derby at Epsom and fourth in the Irish equivalent, before being agonisingly denied on the line in the Grand Prix de Paris.

A setback unfortunately meant he missed the St Leger, and in truth last year never reached the heights of 2016. That said, he did finish the campaign with victory in a Listed event at Kempton and can hopefully go forward from there.