Get on the Coastal path to Scilly success

NICKY HENDERSON likes to take aim at Sandown’s two top-level novice chases and

Balco Coastal is fancied for Saturday’s Scilly Isles.

The race, sponsored by Virgin Bet, has been won a record six times by Henderson, who has also plundered Sandown’s Henry VIII Novices’ Chase on five occasions.

He did that again this term with the imperious Jonbon and Balco Coastal is probably not in the same league as him, but is nonetheless a talented performer in his own right.

Balco Coastal, versatile with regard to ground, won two novice hurdles in style last season and might have seemed not to stay 2m4½f when stepped up in trip and class for a Grade 2.

However, he was a fine third over that distance at Aintree’s Grand National meeting and, after a mixed chasing debut at Newbury, produced a career-best at it when bolting up at Kempton over Christmas.

The son of Coastal Path deserves a crack at this and the race has been mooted for some time, while his four wins have come at right-handed venues.

Sandown is also a place the Hendersontrained Call Me Lord likes, and he can go close in the Pertemps qualifier (2.55).

Six of his finest eight efforts have come at the course and a near three-year losing run was snapped in November, showing the ten-year-old still possesses a bit of zest.

That was also the case at Sandown in December when he probably would have won if conditional Ben Bromley had not dropped his hands after mistaking the winning posts.

Diligent Harry, whose trainer Clive Cox has been among the winners of late, is something of an all-weather ace and appeals for the BetUK Kachy Stakes at Lingfield (1.51) on Saturday. His two course-and-distance runs have yielded a win and a second to the classy Rohaan.

The Bay Warrior tends to save his best for Chelmsford and merits further inspection for the Support The Injured Jockeys Fund Handicap at the track on Thursday.

Also worth noting

Super Survivor (Jamie Snowden) in the 3.00 at Chepstow on Friday

Tempus (Archie Watson) in the 2.26 at Lingfield on Saturday