MUSSELBURGH preview By Gordon Brown

Last year’s narrow runner-up Metier bids to go one better in he £100,000 Virgin Bet Queen’s Cup at Musselburgh on Saturday. Trained in Dorset by Harry Fry, he was only by half a length by Wise Eagle in the 1m 6f Heritage Handicap twelve months ago.

A Grade 1 winning hurdler, he also landed the 2023 Chester Cup after his excellent second-placed effort at Musselburgh. Berkshire Rocco was a gallant fifth in last year’s Ebor Handicap at York and Berkshire handler Andrew Balding has secured David Probert for the ride.

Mark Johnston won two of the last four runnings and his son Charlie has four runners including Yorkindness, who landed the Musselburgh Gold Cup over two miles last September.

Scottish interest centres around Jim Goldie-trained Faylaq and Lucinda Russell’s Evaluation while Ian Jardine is double-handed with Ravenscraig Castle and Manu Et Corde.

Silky Wilkie (2023) and Zarzyni (2022), winners of the last two renewals of the Virgin Bet Scottish Sprint Cup Handicap for Karl Burke and David and Nicola Barron respectively, feature again in the £45,000 dash.

Last April’s Virgin Bet Silver Arrow Handicap winner Gweedore was successful for the second year running and his Galashiels trainer Katie Scott is preparing her stable star for the hat-trick.