Borderlescott runs in his own race at Musselburgh

Popular sprinter Borderlescott begins the new season as a teenager and runs in his own race at Musselburgh on Good Friday.

The 13-year-old was agonisingly touched off in the Totepool Borderlescott Sprint Trophy 12 months ago, but it will be a surprise if he goes as close this season.

Not surprisingly he has dropped down the handicap and he meets a couple of rivals massively wrong at the weights.

He will also be running under Rebecca Bastiman's name for the first time, rather than her father, Robin.

"He's still young at heart and has been doing some nice pieces of work," she said.

"We'll run him here and see how he is, we won't over-race him, that's for sure. He was so unlucky to lose last year but at the same time it was overwhelming how well he actually ran.

"We'll try and place him in the right races to give him the best chance of winning, though obviously he's not very well in tomorrow and the ground will be a bit soft for him.

"Basically he's running as it's his favourite track, he always runs well there, and it's a day out for him.

"I'd like to have run him in the 0-85 handicap instead but he's still rated 87. Once he qualifies for those races I'm sure he'll be competitive."

One of the horses rated nearly 20lb higher than Borderlescott is Kevin Ryan's Blaine.

Winner of the Gimcrack at two, he bounced back to form last year winning a handicap at York and finishing third in the Ayr Gold Cup.

Owner Matt Morgan hopes the race is a springboard to some bigger targets in the first half of the season.

"We've got to start somewhere and I'd rather it was over six furlongs that five and we don't want too much rain," said Morgan.

"Ideally he wants six furlongs but this is a stepping stone, there's a race for him at the Guineas meeting and then he'll go for the Duke of York all being well.

"If he wins you'd hope it wouldn't affect his handicap mark but then we might not be looking at handicaps any more anyway.

"It looks like we've got Robot Boy to beat and we'll be doing our best work late on I'd have thought. Jamie Spencer is going up to ride him."

Jim Goldie runs another popular veteran in Hawkeyethenoo and he believes the nine-year-old is back to his best.

The Uplawmoor-based trainer said: "The 'Hawk' has shown on the gallops recently that he is back to his best, his work has been brilliant and he could be a horse to follow on the Flat this season."

The meeting launches the Scottish Flat season with a two day totepool Easter Festival at Musselburgh starting with a Good Friday card with £170,000 prize money and following up with its traditional Easter Sunday Family Day.

Musselburgh made UK racing history last year when it became the first track to stage turf racing on Good Friday and general manager Bill Farnsworth views this fixture as a platform for establishing a three day Easter Festival in years to come.

Bill Farnsworth said: “It’s all systems go and with prize money of £1.15 million over our 16 fixture Flat season we have managed to increase the average prize money to £70,000 per race meeting.

“We have an excellent combination of superb prize money and quality horses on Good Friday, our popular Easter Sunday Family Day appeals to all ages and features the Musselburgh Gold Cup. Our longer term ambition it to make this a three day Easter Festival with the introduction of jumps fixture and we are working towards that.”

With two £50,000 feature races both shown live on Channel 4 it is little surprise the Good Friday meeting is attracting the attention of some of the country’s leading trainers.

Last year’s champion trainer Mark Johnston landed the Brocklesby Condition Stakes at Doncaster last weekend with Ravenhoe and he is out to grab the Musselburgh version in the £15,000 mytotepool.com Scottish Brocklesby Condition Stakes with Sixth Sense ridden by Joe Fanning, however trainer David O’Meara will put in a strong challenge with Brocklesby runner-up First Bombardment.

In the first running of new race, the £50,000 mytotepool.com Balmoral Cup Handicap, Mark Johnston’s recent all-weather winner Fire Fighting is in fine form, as is Richard Fahey’s Gabrial The Terror which comes to Musselburgh after four straight wins at Wolverhampton. However, the 1m 6f stamina test could play in to the hands of Bayan, an Irish raider from the powerful Gordon Elliott yard, who has also shown great form over hurdles.

In the £50,000 Totequadpot Royal Mile Handicap Tom Hark will be a first Musselburgh runner for Marlborough trainer Richard Hannon, who only took over the reins from his father last term.