Cairdeas can boost Weld’s strike rate!

DERMOT WELD (above) has not enjoyed the best of starts to the flat campaign and currently has only four successes to his name and a strike rate of just 5%.

But that is certain to change, sooner rather than later, and the once-raced Cairdeas can start the ball rolling in the www.thespinroom.com Online Casino Maiden at Naas tonight.

The son of Darshaan who carries the colours of the President, Mary McAleese, performed with real promise on his debut at the Curragh last month. He went off favourite to land that 27-runner affair, but went down by a head to the Aidan O’Brien trained Book Of Kings.

On form Kevin Prendergast’s Crested Pochard should be the biggest danger. He ran with a lot of promise when fourth behind All Too Beautiful, Arch Rebel and Zarafsha at Leopardstown.

That contest has been working out particularly well with All Too Beautiful and Zarafsha going on to score in the meantime.

Riding arrangements, however, would indicate that Exdirectory, who only showed a little promise in two outings as a juvenile, is the number one Prendergast challenger. In any case Cairdeas is a confident choice.

Ballydoyle’s Lord Nelson can hardly be opposed in the Victor Chandler Now In Ireland Maiden. He cost odds-on punters a bundle, going off a 1-5 shot, when beaten two and a half lengths into second place by L’Altro Mondo at the Curragh.

Michael Kinane, fresh from a Curragh treble on Monday, can team up with Athlumney Lad to land the www.victorpoker.com Handicap.

Athlumney Lad was one of Kinane’s winners then, cruising to an easy two lengths victory, and has a leading chance of defying a mandatory 5lbs penalty. Other Kinane possibilities are English invader, Millybaa, in the Listed Woodlands Stakes, and Phantasos in the Victor Chandler Freephone on 1800-992808 Handicap.