WILKINSON CHARGE TO HAVE HIS SAY AT HEXHAM

ALL roads lead to Hexham Racecourse for today’s Haydon fixture, the grand finale of the Northern Area season, which has attracted 75 entries on a seven-race card starting at 2pm.

Whateveryousay can do all the talking in the Shotton Waste Services Maiden Race. Robert Wilkinson’s charge produced a career-best effort when third in last week’s Heart Of All England Maiden Hunters’ Chase at Hexham behind prolific winners Matts Commission and Cullin Hills. He faces nothing of that class here and is preferred to the improving High On The Hill.

Warwickshire-based champion trainer Tom Ellis, who has already sent out 67 Pointing winners in another record-breaking campaign, holds all the aces in the 2m4f Graham Reader Motor Engineer Ladies Open Race with General Arrow and Loughan.

His selected runner will be partnered as usual by wife Gina Andrews, who is on the verge of winning the National Ladies Championship for a tenth time.

The battle for minor honours is likely to concern Fightfortheroses and Vivas.

Proven stayer Queen Kalamba is fancied to reign supreme in the Insync Physiotherapy & Sports Injury Clinic Restricted Race.

Owned, trained and ridden by Oxfordshire-based Amber JacksonFennell, the under-rated mare landed a Paxford Maiden in great style on Easter Monday before finishing third to the useful Raleagh Flora next time, and that form was franked when the winner followed up in a Fakenham Hunters’ Chase.

At his best on a left-handed track, Nick Orpwood’s mount Takethepunishment hasn’t finished out of the first two on his last nine Pointing starts and must go close off level weights in the featured JS Hubbuck Ltd Men’s Open Race as he bids to complete a seasonal hat-trick.

Ask Cory had plenty in hand when providing Chloe McHattie with a memorable debut winner at Corbridge last month, and a 3lb penalty is unlikely to prevent him striking gold again in the High Plains Conditions Race from ex-chaser Darius Des Sources.

After hinting that his turn was not far away when just failing to overhaul Steely Addition on the run-in at Corbridge, Cuneo duly ended a long losing run at Mosshouses under a positive ride from Lyall Hodgins and another winning opportunity beckons in the Lycetts Insurance Brokers Conditions Race, while the 2m4f Jacksons of Hexham Maiden Race appears to rest between unexposed youngsters Easter Glory and Hawkseye View.