More often than not, the Scottish Grand National lives in the shadow of its more famous Aintree equivalent but this season there is increased exposure of the four mile contest at Ayr racecourse. That extra interest comes with the addition of Aurora's Encore to the field for Saturday's race, hot on the heels of his famous win in the Grand National a fortnight ago. The 11 year old is trained in West Yorkshire by Sue Smith and is bidding to become the first horse since Red Rum in 1974 to win both the Aintree and Scottish ‘Nationals' in the same season.
Aurora's Encore produced an excellent round of jumping to win the National at Aintree on a day when the ground came up good at just the right time. Jockey Ryan Mania was always in control of the horse, comfortably seeing off a number of more well fancied runners to upset the odds and romp home to a nine length victory at 66/1! Attention now turns towards Ayr this where the question is being asked about the chances of Aurora's Encore registering back-to-back victories. Aurora's Encore certainly has the best form in the race following his win last time out, but he must now shoulder top weight of 11 stone 12lb as a result of his famous win at the Liverpool track. That fact alone makes this a much tougher assignment and only one horse since Red Rum 39 years ago has carried top weight to victory. Furthermore, the ground looks set to be on the softer side of good which will not help the chances of a horse who loves top of the ground conditions.
All the reports from the Sue Smith's High Eldwick yard indicate that the National winner has come out of the race in great order which is a positive and even with a revised official rating of 148, Aurora's Encore could still have something in hand given the manner of his runaway win at Aintree. Ryan Mania meanwhile has been declared fit for the ride after he picked up an injury at Hexham, which required being taken to hospital in an Air Ambulance just 24 hours after his win on Merseyside! However, the news he's back in the saddle on Aurora's Encore can only be a positive for the horse's chances of entering the history books, for which he is rated a 16/1 chance.
Elsewhere in the Scottish National market, there are a number of options to consider including the exciting Godsmejudge for Alan King. Connections have indicated that the ground conditions will suit the horse while the trip should be no problem either for this tough seven-year-old. Godsmejudge was last seen finishing a distant third in the four mile race at the Cheltenham Festival which looks decent form with this race in mind. He will need to prove he is good enough to win a tough handicap like this one as a novice but all the signs suggest that he could well run a big race on Saturday and looks well treated on a mark of 139, carrying 11 stone 3lb.
The current favourite for the £180,000 contest is Rival D'Estruval for Northumberland based trainer Pauline Robson. The eight year old was last seen falling when well fancied to win the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. Prior to that mishap, Rival D'Estruval had finished either first or second in his previous six starts, earning himself an increasingly good reputation as a stayer. Connections are clearly happy with the horse after his fall at Prestbury Park he could well resume the upward curve north of the border on Saturday and can be backed at a best price of just 6/1 to end a torrid run of results for the favourite in this race, with the last winning jolly coming back in 2000!
The Scottish Grand National has been won by Merigo twice in the last three years but following his retirement, the door is now open for a new star to make a name for themselves. The trip will take some getting as always but the addition of Auroras Encore to the field is only a good thing for the profile of this race. On this occasion it could pay dividends to side with Godsmejudge as he relish will the trip and off of a nice weight, he could be progressive enough to secure a famous victory providing he doesn't fall or encounter traffic problems on his way round.
Odds courtesy of http://www.scottish-grand-national.co.uk/odds.html
