Sky Sports News HQs Alex Hammond provides a race-by-race guide to Friday at the Cheltenham Festival. Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys . 1.30 JCB TRIUMPH HURDLEI was always a fan of Aidan OBriens Ivanovich Gorbatov and felt he deserved another chance after his defeat at Leopardstown. However, there are one or two that have raised their heads over the parapet and, if the better ground doesnt bring about an improvement, he could be vulnerable. I tipped up Paul Nicholls Zubayr before he ran in the Adonis at Kempton and he is a serious contender. He has improvement to find to emulate Zarkandar, who took the same route for the stable but, as he cost connections 380,000 euros, he needs to win this and then go on to win the Champion Hurdle next year to recoup his massive purchase price. Another horse that has been given positive mentions is Sceau Royal, who is progressing with every start for Alan King and brings more experience than some into the race. Its Zubayr for me as he will have improved significantly for his hurdle debut. Alex thinks Zubayr has bright prospects in the Triumph Hurdle 2.10 VINCENT OBRIEN COUNTY HANDICAP HURDLEGreat Field represents Willie Mullins. This will be his handicap debut after one run for Mullins, where he won impressively over 2m 2f despite being too keen. But that was his first run for around 16 months so he may settle better with the freshness out of him and, dropping in trip, they will go much quicker here. Blue Hell won on his debut for Alan Fleming and was raised 22lbs for that success. I imagine they havent dare run him again for fear of a further rise in the weights. Dan Skeltons Superb Story was raised 9lbs for finishing runner up to Old Guard in the Greatwood Handicap Hurdle and hasnt run since. He won on debut for the stable and there looks to be more improvement to come. A Hare Breath could be well-handicapped in the County Hurdle 2.50 ALBERT BARTLETT NOVICES HURDLESpeaking of Ben Pauling, he has a chance of a quick double with Barters Hill in the following race. This horse keeps getting the job done, but gives the impression of being a bit quirky. Hes got a proper engine though and seems as tough as teak. He had to pull out all the stops to win at Doncaster last time and hell hopefully have learned from that. This will be a real test of his ability to race prominently and keep finding more over three miles round here though. As a result, Ill be taking him on with Neil Mulhollands Shantou Village. He is a horse I really like and the step up to three miles shouldnt cause him any problems. By running here he avoids a re-match with Yanworth, who beat him at Cheltenham on his last outing. He was unbeaten prior to that and has a likeable attitude. He must have good ground though. Willie Mullins has Gangster towards the head of the market. The horse has no stamina doubts as he won convincingly over this trip at Fairyhouse in December. That was on heavy but he handles better ground too. Shantou Village looks to have a good chance in the Albert Bartlett 3.30 TIMICO CHELTENHAM GOLD CUPIve changed my mind like the weather in the run-up to the Festival regarding this race. One thing I know is I wont be backing Cue Card, because he wont stay. Don Cossack is the glamour horse in this, hes Barcelona FC, Lionel Messi, Novak Djokovic, Sir Ian Botham, Johnny Wilkinson, the Leicester City of the race! Ive backed Djakadam, but that was before he hit the deck in the trial in January. Last years runner-up looked like another season on his back would help him go one better, but hes got it to prove now. It would be a fairytale for owner Jean Bishop if Cue Card could add to his Haydock and King George wins and pick up the £1m bonus. How is he going to stay up the hill though, and over an extended three and a quarter miles? Cue Card would be a popular winner - but will he stay the trip? The more I look at the race, the more I fancy Don Poli. He has all the attributes of a Gold Cup winner. He is lazy, slow (ish) and keeps a bit for himself. Only joking of course, but he stays and Im not sure we have got to the bottom of him yet. He has the ideal temperament for a Gold Cup too, as he isnt highly strung and should take it all in his stride. An added bonus is the fact he has already won twice at the Cheltenham Festival. Smad Place will evoke memories of Desert Orchid if he can win for Alan King. Id have said he had no chance after the Hennessy and his run in the King George would confirm that. However, his trailblazing win in the trial, with his great attitude to boot, gives connections a glimmer of hope. I dont think Many Clouds was at his best that day though, so it may not be as strong as it looked on paper. He surely cant beat a couple of these can he? This blog is taking so much time, as I keep stopping to have a bet! Its definitely Don Poli in the Gold Cup.4.10 ST JAMESS PLACE FOXHUNTER CHASE CHALLENGE CUPThe same course and distance as the Gold Cup, but there the comparison ends. The race that allows the professional jockeys a chance to celebrate/commiserate after the Gold Cup. There are of course a handful of very experienced amateurs and they are usually worth their weight in gold. Im hoping for a clear round for Victoria Pendleton on Pacha Du Polder who has done magnificently to get to the level required to ride in this race. I take my hat off to her. Victoria Pendleton will be in action in the Foxhunter Chase 4.50 MARTIN PIPE CONDITIONAL JOCKEYS HANDICAP HURDLEThis often throws up a really good performer and trainers tend to send some smart horses here, so dont be afraid of a horse towards the head of the handicap. There are not too many of Gordon Elliotts horses that the bookies are taking any chances with and Squouateur is one of the Elliott horses with a great shout. Talented conditional Jack Kennedy will ride. Hes a progressive horse with just five starts to his name. Qualando is trained by Paul Nicholls and was ridden by Harry Cobden at Taunton last time out in a getting to know you mission. He won the Fred Winter at last years Festival and should be competitive off 139 here. Better ground than he has experienced of late will suit. Qualando will bid for a second Cheltenham Festival win in as many years Qualando will bid for a second Cheltenham Festival win in as many years 5.30 JOHNNY HENDERSON GRAND ANNUAL CHASE CHALLENGE CUPThe getting out stakes! Next Sensation is bidding for back to back wins in this for Michael Scudamore and he is just 1lb higher in his bid to repeat the win. Jessie Harrington trains Rock The World who won a novice chase at this track back in October and hasnt run since. He has been freshened up and would appear to prefer better ground. Velvet Maker is trained by Alan Fleming for owner Barry Connell and he has plenty to recommend him on his first ever run in a handicap. He won on his chasing debut back in November and has twice since come up against Douvan in Grade 1 company. This trip suits well as he has plenty of pace and I fancy his chances. Lough Kent is Nicky Hendersons only entry in the race named after his father. His mark of 138 is attractive and he hasnt had too much racing since winning his first race in the UK at Warwick back in May. It seems likely that his has been laid out for this race, which is obviously one Henderson likes to target, but its Velvet Maker for me in the last race of the week. Also See: Bet now at Cheltenham! Video replay library Full racing results First race of the day offer ￡10 free bet Erik Condra Jersey . Smith, who raised eyebrows at the CFL combine in March with his ability on both sides of the ball, confirmed in a statement he tested positive for the anabolic steroid Stanozolol prior to auditioning for league officials. Anton Stralman Jersey . Tensions rose in the first period when Penguins defenceman Brooks Orpik hit Bruins forward Loui Eriksson with what appeared to be a clean hit. http://www.lightninghockeystore.us/Martin-St-Louis-Jersey/ .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes hope they now have the leadership tandem in place to turn the franchise around. HOUSTON -- Houston manager Bo Porter said early in the season that he thought giving catcher Jason Castro days at designated hitter would keep him fresh late and help the team. It looks like the first-year manager was right. Castro homered twice and drove in three runs to lead the Houston Astros to an 8-5 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday night. Castro hit a two-run homer in the third inning to push the lead to 5-0, and added a solo shot in the seventh to make it 8-4. "The rest that weve been able to give him I think is paying big dividends this time of year," Porter said. "Had he not had the amount of time off hes been afforded this year, I think youll start to see the wear and tear a little bit. But I think hes going to take strong throughout the course of the year because weve done a tremendous job of monitoring his workload." Brandon Barnes gave Houston an early lead with a two-run double in the second inning. Brad Peacock (3-4) allowed six hits and four runs in 5 2-3 innings for the win. Chia-Jen Lo pitched a scoreless ninth for his second save. The Astros jumped on Chien-Ming Wang (1-2) for four hits and five runs in three innings in his first start since July 2 after his contract was selected from Triple-A Buffalo earlier in the day. "Houston built a 7-0 lead before Toronto got anything going on offence. Kevin Pillar hit his first career homer on a three-run shot in the fifth inning and Edwin Encarnacion had a solo homer in the sixth for the Blue Jays. However, Torontos rally came up short as it tied a season-high with its seventh straight loss. "It was a tough go for him," manager John Gibbons said of Wang. "He threw some good sinkers, but a lot of them were flat, and that was what they caught up. We fell behind early. It turned out to be too much to overcome." Castro, who finished with three hits, has 17 homers this season, which ties a team-record for home runs by a catcher set by John Bateman in 1966. It was the third multi-home run game of his career and the second this season. He said it was "surreal" to match the record, but that he thought he would be in for a good season after a productive spring training where he made some adjustments to his hitting. "The biggest thing that Ive really been trying to do this year is stay as consistent as possible and really not deviate from my approach," he said. "Ive tried to be as simple as possible and its worked out so far." Castro doubled to start Houstons second and advanced to third on a one-out single by Brett Wallace. The Astros took a 2-0 lead on Barnes two-run double. A wild pitch by Wang allowed Barnes to advance to third with two outs before he scored when Jonathan Villar reached on an error by Jose Reyyes. Matthew Spencer Jersey. L.J. Hoes walked in the third inning before Castro hit his 16th homer to the seats in right field with one out to make it 5-0. Right fielder Rajai Davis climbed up the short wall in vain to chase to ball as it sailed out of his reach and into the stands. Barnes reached on a second error by Reyes with no outs in the fourth. Robbie Grossman extended his hitting streak to a career-high 11 games with a two-out RBI double before taking third on a passed ball. Hoes pushed the lead to 7-0 when Grossman scored on his double to the wall in right field. Peacock yielded a double to Brett Lawrie to start the second inning before retiring the next six batters. Encarnacion walked to start the fourth, but Peacock got out of the inning with a double play. Peacock allowed consecutive one out singles to Anthony Gose and Ryan Goins before the homer by Pillar cut the lead to 7-3. The hit, which bounced off the wall in left-centre field, was originally a double, but it was reviewed and ruled a homer. Pillar smiled before trotting to home plate where umpire Bill Miller was waiting to hand him the ball. Encarnacion got the Blue Jays within 7-4 when he homered for the second straight game to start the sixth. J. P. Arencibias RBI double made it 8-5 in the eighth. Wang was making his second career start against Houston and the first since tearing ligaments in his right foot running the bases when he pitched as the ace of the Yankees staff and faced the Astros on June 15, 2008. NOTES: The Blue Jays recalled RHP Chad Jenkins from Double-A New Hampshire and transferred INF Maicer Izturis, out with a sprained left ankle, to the 60-day DL. Jenkins allowed three hits and three runs in four innings. ... Houston Texans GM Rick Smith was a guest of Porter at batting practice before the game. "It was a natural connection and our friendship just has developed more and more as time went on," Porter said. "Hes a huge supporter of mine and Im a huge supporter of his." Smith said he has enjoyed watching Porters work in his first year as manager. "Hes such a leader," Smith said. "Obviously theres not a whole lot of success happening in terms of wins and losses, but what he is building here is so impressive. To watch him each day come to the ballpark with such a positive outlook and where hes leading this group is just impressive."... The Astros announced LHP Erik Bedard will be moved out of the rotation and into the bullpen. Porter said theyll announce his replacement in the rotation early next week. The 34-year-old Bedard, who had never pitched in relief in his career until a stint earlier this season, wasnt too happy about the move. "I was very surprised," he said. "I dont really know what to say." Black China NFL Jerseys China NFL Jerseys Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale NFL T-shirts Cheap NFL T-shirts Wholesale Jerseys 2018 Cheap NFL Jerseys Camo ' ' '