REEL BUDDY can once again be the punters' pal by lifting Newbury's Group 3 Stan James Hungerford Stakes.

After a sparkling start to the season, when he repaid his supporters in spades by rattling off a brilliant three-timer at Kempton, Haydock and Newmarket, Reel Buddy then hit a brick wall, encountering crushing defeats at Ascot and Newmarket.

Thankfully the bad times appear to be over, judged on his third-placing to Rock Of Gibraltar and Noverre in the Group 1 Sussex Stakes at Glorious Goodwood.

That performance, against arguably Europe's two leading milers, showed Reel Buddy (3.05) to be back on good terms with himself and ready to plunder yet another major prize.

One of this column's old friends, Murghem (4.10), bids to repeat his year 2000 success in the valuable Group 2 Geoffrey Freer Stakes.

Mark Johnston's talented stayer is nearing the veteran stage, but Johnston sets great store in keeping his older horses on the go, a point underlined by the stable's gallant ten-year-old Yavana's Pace, who re-wrote the history books by becoming the oldest winner of Group 1 race in Germany last Sunday.

Murgehem's not quite in that league, however he shaped as if returning to something like his best when third on his latest outing at Goodwood.

A whole clutch of leading three-year-old sprinters lock horns at Newmarket in the National Horseracing Museum Handicap and Impressive Flight (3.20) could well be the answer.

David's Barron's filly landed a massive gamble on her Thirsk debut back in the spring and has since demonstrated the result was no fluke by being placed in a couple of top-quality sprints, including over today's track and trip behind Feet So Fast.

Since being eclipsed by Feet So Fast, the latter has given the form a real gilt-edge look by blitzing a classy field in last Saturday's Shergar Cup at Ascot.

Another individual to feature prominently in the Shergar Cup was Patrick Haslam's smart juvenile Devious Boy (2.20), who makes a quick-fire reappearance in the opener at Ripon, the Horn Blower Conditions Stakes.

Devious Boy has never once finished out of the first two in six outings, his main rival quite conceivably will emerge in the shape Ketan, successful at Thirsk and Redcar on his two starts to date.

National Hunt fans have a couple of competitive cards to get their teeth into starting at Perth, where Misty Ridge (5.10) should not disappoint in the Dewhurst Ring Bookmakers Handicap.

After a fairly torrid time during the 2001 jumps' campaign, Sue Smith has come out all guns blazing in 2002.

Misty Ridge didn't appear to get home over three-miles-and-two-furlongs at Southwell last time out, his stamina is not however suspect back over an extended two-and-a-half-miles, the trip over which he won at Market Rasen in June.

At Bangor, the progressive Border Star (4.20) can continue in the ascendancy. Malcolm Jefferson's Malton raider won last week at Stratford and Jefferson has decided to strike while the iron is hot

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