PREPARE for an electrifying performance from High Voltage, fancied to storm away with this afternoon's £50,000 Portland Handicap on day one of Doncaster's St Leger meeting.

Trainer Karl Burke and jockey Darren Williams could both do with a boost after last weeks' race-fixing allegations, and High Voltage, a narrow winner of a valuable sprint at Chester recently, has the speed to land the dash for the cash.

Burke's powerfully built three-year-old chestnut has an uncomplicated catch-me-if-you-can style of running, which in the case of Darren Williams means it is more a matter of lighting the blue touch paper and letting rip from the stalls, rather than having to weave his way through the pack.

As far as the form-book goes the David Nicholls-trained Merlins Dancer, successful at Glorious Goodwood, represents a major threat. But before you go out and have your house on Merlins Dancer, it is worth remembering that Nicholls has had 48 runners at the St Leger Festival over the past five years and not one single winner.

I'll wager a few owners didn't sleep a wink last night considering there is a massive £200,000 up for grabs in the St Leger Yearling Stakes, a race confined exclusively to those juveniles bought exactly 12 months ago at the annual Bloodstock Sales, which take place concurrently to the fixture.

Bleary-eyed of not, it could well be that the Mill House Partnership will come away with the money courtesy of their classy unbeaten two-year-old, Caesar Beware (1.50).

Henry Candy's exceptionally quick son of Daggers Drawn has looked a total "flying machine" on his two starts to date, scoring back-to-back victories in effortless fashion at Chepstow and Windsor.

In the opening Carrie Red Fillies' Nursery Stakes I'm very sweet on the chances of Lamh Eile (1.15).

She's a little fireball of a filly, expertly placed by her trainer, David Barron, to win at Ayr and Catterick.

He then upped his sprinter significantly in grade and was only just denied in a thrilling three-way photo-finish at Ascot.

Lamh Eile possesses the invaluable asset of being able to change gear off a fast early pace, so expect her rider Nicky Mackay to sit just behind the leaders, prior to shifting into overdrive and picking off the leaders inside the final furlong.

* INCHPAST maintained the challenge of Janus (Colin Woods) for this year's Racing Post/Coral Naps competition with a 3-1 victory at Catterick yesterday.

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