Going for gold at Cheltenham (From Free Press Series)

Going for gold at Cheltenham

THERE are still two meetings at Chepstow Race-course before it starts, but the countdown is on in earnest to the Cheltenham National Hunt Festival in the middle of March. Welsh-trained Take The Stand - twice a runner in the Coral Welsh National at Chepstow - did The Principality proud when finishing second in last year's Cheltenham Gold Cup. So where will the chances for Welsh success come from in 2006?

Take The Stand, trained in Pembrokeshire by Peter Bowen, is on the trail of 'gold' again, as is stablemate Ballycassidy.

Another horse from the same yard is McKelvey, which ran in the Welsh National at the end of December. He's in the 'Gold Cup' for novice steeplechasers: the Royal & SunAlliance Chase, on the second day of the four-day festival.

But perhaps the most intriguing prospect among the Welsh-trained entries for Cheltenham could be She's Our Native, from the Vale of Glamorgan yard of trainer Evan Williams, who is having a tremendous season in 2005/6. The horse has developed into a specialist at Ludlow and Hereford Racecourses.

Ridden to victory by Welsh jockey Lee Stephens at Hereford at the start of last month, the horse has since followed up with two more wins. She's entered in the Royal & SunAlliance Novices' Hurdle.

So what do the bookmakers make of it?

In the Gold Cup, Take The Stand is a best-priced 14-1, but more generally 11-1 or 12-1. However, Bally-cassidy - which also holds a Grand National entry for which he's rated a 50-1 chance - is a long shot at 100-1 or more for Cheltenham.

In the respective novices' races, McKelvey is 66-1, as is She's Our Native, though some bookmakers have her at a shorter price.

The next racing at Chepstow Racecourse is on Saturday, February 25. when the first race is scheduled for 2.10pm.