THERE'S a truly international line-up for this afternoon's Group 1 Queen Elizabeth 11 Stakes at Ascot, with six countries represented in the £300,000 showpiece.

Frankie Dettori's mount, Noverre, the winner of this season's French 2000 Guineas and the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood, is a worthy favourite, just ahead of the horse he beat in the latter, No Excuse Needed.

Assuming No Excuse Needed is a late developer, and there's no finer patrician of such charges as his vastly-experienced handler, Sir Michael Stoute, it's my guess that Kieren Fallon and partner will get their revenge today.

No Excuse Needed is clearly on the upgrade having brushed aside Tamburlaine with ease on his latest outing in a Group 2 event, also at Goodwood.

And granted that the colt will additionally be admirably suited by Ascot's severe climb to the winning post, all seems set fair for the prestigious race to be landed by a UK-trained horse.

So what is there to make of the foreign challenge?

Plenty if you take into account the combined achievements of the German challenger Proudwings, French raider Valhorimix, Ireland's Hawkeye and Bach, and not forgetting the longest traveller of them all, Singapore-based Bocelli.

None of that world-class quintet can be dismissed with any certainty, however home advantage is normally worth a pound or two in these instances, although No Excuse Needed will still have to be on top of his game to prevail.

The other Group One event on the card, the Meon Valley Stud Fillies' Mile, provides Henry Cecil with another opportunity to salvage some glory from an otherwise mainly depressing season.

There were some extremely positive vibes emanating from Cecil's camp about this daughter of Danehill at Doncaster's St Leger meeting, and for once the grapevine proved correct as she sluiced up in the Group Three May Hill Stakes.

Pattern-standard five-year-old mares are worth their weight in gold and I reckon Nice One Clare (3.05) is about to record her first Group success in the Diadem Stakes.

Pip Payne's sprinter won the "Wokingham" in great style over track and trip at the Royal meeting and confirmed her well-being with a battling success in Listed company at Doncaster last time out.

Haydock-bound Dancing Bay (2.40) looks sure to go close in the mile-and-three-quarter Akzo Nobel Handicap.

The selection has taken a devil of a long time to recapture his useful three-year-old form, but there have been signs over the past few weeks that Julie Camamcho's soft-ground specialist is about to hit top gear.

Another individual who revels in testing conditions is Francport, a strong each-way fancy in the five-furlong dash at 3.50.

He twice ran with credit at Ayr's Western Meeting on a surface palpably too quick. Now back in his element, Kevin Ryan's speedster will be a tough nut to crack in the hands of Fergal Lynch.

Sandwiched between those two races don't forget to have a shilling on Samadilla (3.15) in the Littlewoods Autumn Handicap.

Tim Easterby's smart three-year-old has an ideal low draw from which to get first run on her 15 rivals.

Decent prize-money over the sticks at Market Rasen has lured many of the southern boys up to popular Lincolnshire venue.

Perhaps one of the lesser-known, yet hugely effective, National Hunt handlers, Lawrence Wells, is one of the long-range visitors, all the way up from Wisborough Green in West Sussex.

Lawrence is bringing up his stable star, Audacter (3.35), for the Natwest Novices' Chase, a gelding turning his attentions to the bigger obstacles after a couple of successful years operating over timber.

In the last-named sphere he was more than useful, claiming some notable scalps at the likes of Haydock and Kempton.

Provided Audacter takes to chasing, he could prove good value in opposition to the likely favourite Sulphur Springs, who has been running up a sequence against mainly moderate horses.

In the following three-mile Handicap Hurdle, Fiori (4.05) appears to be something to bet on.

Patrick Haslam's five-year-old opened his pipes very nicely when fourth over a totally inadequate two-miles-and-one-furlong at Worcester recently, a run which will have put him spot-on for this £15,000 contest.

Finally to Plumpton, where Pace Stalker (4.30) is worth another chance in the 4.30.

Having hosed up on his chasing debut at Folkestone in May, he was then backed as if defeat was out of the question at Southwell later that month. Sure enough Pace Stalker was absolutely cantering until he didn't get high enough at the sixth fence, resulting in the hapless Philip Hide being catapulted into orbit.

Hide will surely be on his mettle not to let a similar calamity take place, especially as the five-year-old appears to be one of Gary Moore's principal young hopes for the weeks and months to come.

* Mary Reveley's good chaser Brother of Iris, a leading fancy for the Tote Cheltenham Gold Cup a couple of seasons ago, has been retired.

The eight-year-old won seven races, five over fences, including the Pertemps Great Yorkshire chase in 1999, two over hurdles and a bumper on his racecourse debut at Carlisle in March 1997.

But in the past 18 months he has not had the best of luck, when a hot favourite to win the Great Yorkshire in 2000, a trace of blood was spotted in his nose at the start and he had to be withdrawn from the Doncaster test and the following month he was reported to have chipped a bone in a fetlock in the Racing Post Chase at Kempton.

He was last seen out at Market Rasen in July when he was pulled up in the Tote Scoop 6 Anniversary Summer Special Chase

Read more from Colin Woods at Racing North.