Ollie Magern Set To Make Seasonal Reappearance

The Grade Two #75,000 bet365 Charlie Hall Chase, the feature race of Wetherby´s two-day bet365 Charlie Hall Chase meeting on Saturday, October 29, has attracted a dozen of the country´s leading chasers.

Naunton trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies has revealed that his exciting chaser Ollie Magern is on course to reappear in the three mile and one furlong contest.

One of the best novice chasers of last season, Ollie Magern won five races including the Grade One Feltham Novices´ Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day and the Grade Two Totty Construction Towton Novices´ Chase at Wetherby in February, when he defeated subsequent Cheltenham Festival scorer King Harald. Ollie Magern also ran numerous other good races in defeat, notably when second to Celestial Gold in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Newbury.

A leg injury ruled the talented seven year-old out of last year´s Cheltenham Festival and the remainder of the season, however the horse is now back in good shape for his comeback and the trainer is predicting a bold showing.

Despite having not run since February 19, the trainer believes that the horse is about '90% fit' for his first start of the new campaign, for which the sponsors rate him an 11/2 chance.

Twiston-Davies revealed: 'He´s in very good form and I´m expecting a big run. He jumps well and there are no worries. Last season he was a course and distance winner, which is obviously encouraging and the form of that win looks very solid.'

Twiston-Davies confirmed that the horse would be aimed towards the totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup at Cheltenham next March, although his performance at the weekend would determine the immediate programme: 'If he does well on Saturday we´ll go towards the bonus races, if he doesn´t prove up to it we´ll go down the handicap route.'

The #75,000 race, part of the BHB´s Order Of Merit, was won last season by the Howard Johnson-trained Grey Abbey who went on to collect the Pillar Property Chase and Betfair Bowl, and the gallant grey could again take his chance.

Johnson is looking for a hat-trick of wins, Ballybough Rasher having taken the prize in 2003 at odds of 40/1 when defeating Marlborough.

Totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up Take The Stand could line up for trainer Peter Bowen who gave the nine-year-old an outing over hurdles at Uttoxeter on September 7.

Heading the market at 11/4 is Robert Alner´s Kingscliff, runner-up to Kicking King in last season´s King George VI Chase at Kempton.

Other contenders include Ferdy Murphy´s Gala Casino´s Scottish Grand National winner Joe´s Edge and the Jonjo O´Neill-trained Keen Leader.

High-class staying hurdler Crystal d´Ainay, second to Telemoss in last season´s Grade Two John Smith´s Hurdle at the bet365 Charlie Hall Chase meeting is another possible starter. He looked an exciting recruit to the larger obstacles when finishing third to Grey Abbey in the Betfair Bowl at Aintree in April on his British chasing debut.

Paul Nicholls has two to choose from in John Smith´s Grand National runner-up Royal Auclair and Colourful Life, successful last season in the valuable Sky Bet Chase at Doncaster.

The three remaining entries are Chives from the local Bingley yard of Sue Smith, Major Benefit and Strong Resolve.

The going at Wetherby is currently SOFT. Chief Executive James Sanderson said: 'Following 15mm of rain last night and today, I changed the going to soft this afternoon.

'The forecast is for an unsettled week, with some autumnal showers although we are not expecting any deluges.

'My best guess at this stage would be for a mixture of soft and good to soft ground for the bet365 Charlie Hall Chase meeting.'