12 in Ormonde Stakes contention US Army Ranger and Midterm feature among a strong field of 12 runners for the Boodles Diamond Ormonde Stakes at Chester on Friday. The Aidan O'Brien-trained US Army Ranger won the Chester Vase at this fixture 12 months ago before faring best of the Ballydoyle battalion when runner-up to Harzand in the Epsom Derby. He failed to add to his tally during the remainder of his three-year-old campaign and was beaten on his reappearance in last month's Alleged Stakes at Naas, but should strip fitter for the outing. As a son of Galileo out of the great racemare Midday, Sir Michael Stoute's Midterm has plenty to live up to on breeding. The four-year-old looked a possible Classic contender after winning his first two starts, but has been largely disappointing since failing to fire in last year's Dante at York. It will be interesting to see whether the application of a visor has the desired effect. Other contenders in a competitive field include John Gosden's Western Hymn, the Andrew Balding-trained Duretto, Ed Dunlop's Red Verdon and Winning Story from Saeed bin Suroor's yard. Nine three-year-olds have been declared for the Homeserve Dee Stakes. O'Brien, who has won this Listed prize five times, relies on Cliffs Of Moher, who has not been seen since trouncing talented stablemate Orderofthegarter in a Leopardstown maiden last October. Charlie Appleby's Bay Of Poets and Richard Hannon's Majeste both bring three-figure ratings to the table, while the Stoute-trained Frankel colt Mirage Dancer makes his first appearance since winning on his racecourse debut at Doncaster last autumn.
