DESPITE being in that seemingly fallow period between the Cheltenham Festival and the Grand National there is some decent racing this afternoon and the value wager could well be Sharp Defence (NAP) in the opening seven furlong handicap at Musselburgh at 1.50.

Nicely drawn in stall number four, the four-year-old has tumbled in the handicap, but on his best form from 12 months ago he looks vastly over priced at around the 16/1 mark.

He should also get a really nice tow into the race with several runners that like to be at the sharp end and he looks a solid each-way play and sporting nap.

The big race of the day at the Edinburgh track is the Gold Cup over one-and-three-quarter-miles at 3.35 and with more rain forecast this could turn into a real slugfest down the long home stretch, especially as a number of these like to be at the front of affairs of course headed by the front-running Brandon Castle.

Such a make-up could suit the likes of the 10-year-old Clever Cookie and our selection, the lightly raced Time to Study.

Mark Johnston’s charge acts on soft ground, has a really good record going to post fresh and I suspect we have yet to see the best of him having just the 11th start of his career. I fancy he could make up into a group horse by the end of the season and he gets the vote over Carbon Dating and the progressive American Gigolo.

The big sprint at 2.25, the Borderlescott Stakes, can go to Alpha Delphini who was in glorious form at the back end of last season.

If the son of Captain Gerrard carries on where he left off last season, a ready win over course and distance on very similar ground, then he should be very hard to beat and looks sure to start favourite here.

It’s a big day on the all-weather at Kempton as well with the always competitive Roseberry Handicap over a mile and three furlongs at 4.20 in which the unexposed Contrast should be able to take care of his more experienced rivals.

Judged on his previous runs over a mile he could well defy his breeding [by Dutch Art] and excel over this extra yardage in a fast run race following his success over this distance in a relatively slowly run race at Lingfield in a small field.

The Matchbook Casino Handicap (1m2f) at 3.45 has a relatively small field, but a few improving sorts and I think this could be the season where we see a big step forward from Stanley (nb).

The Richard Hughes-trained course and distance winner looked green on more than the one occasion last year and is quite probably a whole lot better than his current handicap mark of 80 and this looks a really good starting point for him this year and he has the top-weight Time to Blossom to beat.

On the national hunt front, veteran Killala Quay is set to outrun his price at Haydock Park 3.15, while the stayers event at 4.25 could go the way of Condaw Native who has been running consistently well all season, is still improving and won’t mind any more rain.