WHILE trainer Mark Johnston jets off to Dubai to supervise the arrival of eight of his horses, Murghem will hopefully be flying the flag for the stable at a somewhat cooler Lingfield.

Murghem (3.10) hasn't had quite such a fruitful campaign on turf this season, winning just once at Haydock in the autumn, but thanks to the Surrey course's forward-thinking executive, help is at hand.

Once upon a time there weren't any races for Listed standard middle-distance performers on the all-weather. By virtue of extra money being pumped into winter Flat racing, contests such as the valuable mile-and-a-half £10,000 Danny O'Shea Memorial Conditions Stakes have filled the void.

Even though Murghem might not quite be the force of old - he won in Group 2 company a couple of years ago - I think he'll still be good enough to get back on the winning trail at the comparatively ripe old age of seven.

Joe Fanning, booked to ride Murghem, might easily initiate a double by booting home Effervesce (12.35) in the earlier seven-furlong Betfair Handicap.

Trainer Mark Buckley has not looked back since switching his operation from Helmsley in North Yorkshire to Lincolnshire. Effervesce has done all of her winning so far over sprint distances and has been weighted accordingly. But to my way of thinking there could be considerable improvement to come now that she is stepped up in distance.

In the following mile-and-a-quarter Apprentices' Handicap, Port Moresby (1.10) is well worth a small investment.

For starters, the selection has the advantage of being ridden by easily the best and most experienced rider in the race, Paul Hannagan, not to mention the fact that Port Moresby has already had a couple of near-misses on the polytrack.

If the forecast rain arrives at Ludlow and eases the ground to soft or even heavy, the finish of the feature race on the card, the three-mile Lugg Handicap Chase, could be fought out between Cassia Heights and Midnight Gunner (2.20).

Both have course-and-distance victories to their name, the former over fences, the latter over hurdles. All in all it's a very tight call, with Midnight Gunner just getting the vote on account of the presence of the peerless Timmy Murphy in the saddle.

Finally to Taunton, where Lorgnette (2.00) is fancied to get off the mark over fences in the Novices' Handicap Chase.

Her rider Andrew Thornton, who slotted in a handy double at Newbury yesterday, knows exactly how to get the best out of the eight-year-old mare, having steered her to success at Wincanton and Plumpton last season.

* D J Flippance pulverised his rivals at Kelso yesterday to land a 5-1 winning nap for Janus.

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