LYNDA RAMSDEN'S Favour (5.40) has the power to do punters a good turn by winning the Renault Kangoo at Newcastle this afternoon.

Having failed to prevail so far this season, Favour falls into the "under-achiever" bracket.

But there's still a few weeks in which to make amends, and judged on her latest run at Pontefract, where she finished third to Saristar, an overdue success is very much on the cards.

Quite where the normally fleet-of-foot four-year-old has gone wrong is rather a mystery because she started the year brightly enough when runner-up on her re-appearance at Doncaster in May.

Using that encouraging effort as a yardstick, it seemed the selection was all set to build on a highly successful 2003 three-year-old campaign. But for one reason or another, she simply lost her way.

To be fair to Lynda, it is never easy to predict how mares and fillies are going to perform.

But the old sparkle did appear to be back last time out, and provided Favour can build on that pleasing performance, victory is no forlorn hope in the five-furlong dash.

Much earlier on in the day, Crosspeace (3.10) will be high on many backers' short list to pick up the Reg Vardy EBF Maiden Stakes.

Mark Johnston's juvenile made an excellent debut over track and trip when chasing home Godolphin's smart newcomer, Potent Heir.

By modern-day standards, £32,000 guineas was not a great deal to pay for the son of Cape Cross, and my hunch is that Crosspeace is yet another Johnston bargain-basement buy about to make good.

In the opener at Nottingham, Stan Moore's Larad (2.20) has a better chance than most of landing the lowly ten-furlong Apprentice Selling Handicap.

Hard-nosed past form is by far the best currency with which to assess horse races and the fact that Larad has already won twice stands him in good stead against a bunch of rivals not given to the winning habit.

After an extremely busy time during the spring, Moore gave his gelding a rest throughout most of the summer.

Larad came back from his break at Brighton last week, and although didn't get in the money, was noted by one or two shrewd judges making significant late headway over the final couple of furlongs.

Richard Fahey wouldn't travel all the way from Malton to Salisbury unless he believed his useful two-year-old, Claret And Amber (4.30), had decent prospects of returning with the first prize for the Alverti Conditions Stakes.

Claret And Amber is a big strapping deep-girthed colt, a body which houses a Rolls Royce engine. Having notched a double at Ripon and Chester, he finished like a proverbial express train on an unsuitably quick surface to pinch fifth spot in the valuable St Leger Sales race at Doncaster.

Today's much stiffer six furlongs, plus the certainty of plenty more juice in the ground, will undoubtedly help Claret And Amber in his bid to get back on the winning trail

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