DETHRONED champion hurdler Rooster Booster (2.20) has the class to get back on the winning trail in £150,000 Martell Cognac Hurdle on a superb supporting card to the Grand National at Aintree.

Some would argue Richard Johnson botched the job at Cheltenham, where he appeared to wait a little too long before making his challenge on the Philip Hobbs-trained dashing grey.

That's all history now and the best way of erasing the memory of what was a shock defeat is to re-establish himself at the peak of his profession by repelling all in the two-and-half-mile contest.

Sadly, his Festival conqueror, Hardy Eustace, is not turning up for the re-match. However, many of the other big guns are on show, including Alan Shearer's Intersky Falcon, who could give Rooster Booster the most to think about.

While Rooster Booster was being eclipsed at Cheltenham, Richard Guest was enjoying much better luck by claiming his first Festival winner as a trainer courtesy of Our Armageddon (4.25)

Small in stature yet huge in heart, Our Armageddon put his rivals to the sword with a truly magnificent front-running display in the Cathcart Challenge Cup. Often gaining a length or two at virtually every fence, Guest's gelding is such a slick jumper he could well follow up in the Novices' Handicap Chase, even with top-weight to shoulder.

Fellow North-East handler, Mary Reveley, hasn't had a great deal to shout about lately but her big-race fortunes could be about to change if Golden Odyssey (5.10) can win the closing Champion Standard National Hunt Flat Race.

Beaten just once in three outings, Reveley's classy mare appears to have a golden future, given the level of her promising performances to date.

Racegoers at Newcastle's Flat fixture will be able to view the FA Cup semi-final on racecourse televisions, plus all the thrills-and-spills of the National on a specially erected big screen.

Nap vote at Tyneside's rain-softened track goes to Bryan Smart's mud-lover Creskeld (2.40) in the one-mile cantorodds.co.uk Handicap.

Creskeld warmed up for the race with a cracking third placing in the Lincoln Trial on the all-weather at Wolverhampton. Although he raced off a mark of 87 that day, his current turf rating remains a monster 15lbs lower, which to my way of thinking is an open invitation to take the bookies to the cleaners.

In the opening mile-and-a-half Handicap, Archie Babe (1.40) makes plenty of appeal.

Tipped up by this column to win the first turf event of the season at Doncaster, Archie Babe never seemed to get out of third gear on the Town Moor, where the ground was probably a little too lively for his liking.

Seeing as the heavens have opened over the past couple of days, underfoot conditions are now perfect for the normally reliable eight-year-old, fancied to make amends with ace jockey Kevin Darley in the saddle.

The reappearance of last year's top-rated two-year-old colt, Milk It Mick, is the highlight of Lingfield's six-race meeting.

Provided Jamie Osborne has his stable-star fully tuned up, Darryll Holland shouldn't have any problems steering his mount to victory. One word of caution though, Milk It Mick (1.55) is unproven on the man-made Polytrack course.

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