WILLIAM'S WELL, improving hand over fist in recent weeks, is fancied to complete a fabulous three-timer in the Ladbroke-sponsored £30,000 Showcase Handicap at Goodwood today.

It's not often six-year-olds suddenly find another gear, but that's just what has happened to Mick Easterby's sprinter since the start of August.

First of all he bolted up from an impossible-looking wide draw at Pontefract, then proceeded to show his rivals a clear pair of hooves in the hotly-contested Great St Wilfred Handicap at Ripon last Saturday.

With William's Well (2.45) in the form of his life, many punters will be hoping he can provide some of the weekend spending money, including no doubt his charismatic veteran trainer, not averse to a tilt at the ring himself provided the odds aren't too short.

The following Group 2 Celebration Mile has attracted a high-quality field in-keeping with the pool of £80,000 of prize money on offer.

Despite the strength-in-depth of the 7-runner line-up, I simply cannot look beyond likely favourite Observatory (3.20), so impressive both here and at Royal Ascot on his last two starts.

There's a bumper card at Beverley beginning with a tricky five furlong Maiden Stakes.

Newmarket-based James Toller sends up Villa Via (2.20), capable of making it third time lucky after a couple of near misses.

On current evidence both Tipperary Sunset and Kass Alhawa (2.50) are leading contenders for the Stanley Racing Handicap.

Preference is marginally for the former, a previous track and trip scorer with the ability to produce a smart turn of foot when in the mood.

Fairy Prince (3.25), fourth at Newbury when racing on the unfavoured slow ground in the centre of the course, is just the type of enigmatic character to pop up a big price in the five-furlong dash at 3.25.

Top-weight Arzillo (5.00) catches my eye in the closing Hands And Heels Maiden Apprentice Handicap.

Milton Bradley' four-year-old has been racing over mainly sprint distances to date, although the one time he was tried over a stiff mile at Salisbury last term he performed with credit to finish third off a mark of 61.

However a string of subsequent in-and-out performances has seen his rating plummet down to an extremely handy 47. If Arzillo does prove effective over this afternoon's mile-and-a-quarter, I'm sure he'll be involved in the battle to the line.

Bank Holiday National Hunt action over in the Lake District at Cartmel is sure to attract its customary massive crowd.

Kate Milligan has decent double prospects via Piccadilly (2.25), a game sort of mare fit from the flat, plus My Buster (2.55), far from disgraced when runner-up at Sedgefield 23 days ago.

Winner finding at Redcar, hosting the final evening turf meeting of the year, is not going to be easy with a stack of competitive events to sort through. It will not have escaped assiduous form book students that Tom Dougal (6.30) would be something of a good thing if coming back to anything like his best in the Rycroft Mercedes-Benz Handicap.

The Charles Smith trained gelding can be forgiven a diabolical run at Doncaster in July when he failed to overcome the double disadvantage of a sluggish start and wide draw.

In the past Tom Dougal has regularly run with merit at Grade 1 tracks such as York.

If his enthusiasm is rekindled by this slightly less exacting company, he might just put an end to a rather long and depressing losing sequence.

Windsor-bound Adobe (7.20) makes a swift reappearance in the £10,000 Arena Leisure Handicap having failed to cut any ice at York's Ebor Festival earlier this week.

In actual fact Adobe didn't get the opportunity to show what he is really made of because a tardy start cost him any chance of victory at a meeting totally dominated by front-runners.

Given a level break, Mark Brisbourne's hardy son of Green Desert could conceivably tot up success number eight of a superb campaign, likely to earn him the much sought after Channel 4 Trophy won by the horse responsible for winning the most races in the season.

l Northern Echo, the three-year-old owned by a partnership of Echo readers, relished its first run over a mile-and-a-half last night.

The Michael Dods gelding, starting at 11-1, finished second to odds-on Newmarket trained Chaka Zulu in the last race at Newcastle.