Ginger Joe - Betting Tips for Saturday 14 September 2024

Welcome to St Leger Saturday at Doncaster!

Saturday takes us to Doncaster for one of the biggest Flat races of the year - the 2024 St Leger. But before we get to that, my first betting tip comes in the Portland Handicap. My selection here has taken a while to learn his craft, but he was superb last time out at Haydock and I expect him to be bang in the mix again here. I think he has a very strong winning chance, but at his current price you could certainly back him each way.

My Saturday NAP runs in the feature race, the 2024 St Leger. Aiden O’Brien seems to have control here, with three runners in the lineup. However, the race looks set up for one in particular , and I will be very surprised if my selection gets beaten here.

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15:00 - The Betfred Portland Handicap 5½f - Shagraan @ 13/2 (EW)

We have a deeply competitive field for this year’s renewal of the Portland Handicap. Jm Jungle comes here in fine form after winning last time out at York, but he will need to dig deep with a 4lb rise in the weights. Apollo One has been knocking on the door all season and is definitely due a big win, so it would be no surprise to see him feature heavily too.

But the one I’m siding with is Shagraan, who is well on his way to becoming a Group horse. Although he was beaten by Jm Jungle on his penultimate start at York, he stuck to the task much better at Haydock last time and I expect him to build on that again. He looks like a horse that still has plenty to come, yet appears to be ahead of the handicapper. He has only gone up 3lbs for his latest win, the Appleby yard won this race last year, and Shagraan should go well here at Doncaster.

15:35 - The 2024 Betfred St Leger (Group 1) 1m 6½f - Illinois @ 15/8 (NAP)

The highlight of the day is the Group 1 St Leger, and I think Aiden O’Brien holds all the aces here. Jan Brueghel is a lovely horse who is unbeaten in three and will probably appreciate this longer trip, but he will need to find more to beat his stablemate here. You Got To Me has been supplemented by the Beckett team, and certainly deserves to line up, but I think he may fall a little short on class.

The one to beat here is Illinois. He is an excellent stayer and exactly the right type to win the St Leger. He always digs deep and tends to do his best work late on. He came in just behind stablemate Los Angeles in the Voltigeur, but his best performance to date was over this trip three starts back, where he beat Highbury at Ascot. I see no reason to oppose Illinois here, he is proven over the distance and getting better with each start.

My betting tips for St Leger Saturday 👇

• 15:00 The Portland Handicap - Shagraan @ 13/2 (EW)
• 15:35 The 2024 St Leger - Illinois @ 15/8 (NAP)

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