I simply cannot refuse a bit of this former Grand National winner at 16-1 for the Cross Country

SUN Racing’s Mark Nevin returns with his latest Cheltenham Festival ante-post piece.

Below, he picks out some horses that caught his eye over the busy Christmas period.

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Noble Yeats can warm up for the National with a win at Cheltenham[/caption]

And he takes a look at how his previous tips are going. Be warned there is a lot of good, some bad… and a couple downright ugly.

Latest ante-post picks

Storm Heart looked like a machine at Punchestown, so let’s have £20 win at 6-1 for the Triumph.

We’ll also have a tenner win on You Wear It Well (20s) and Love Envoi (10s) in the Mares Hurdle.

And the same bet on Noble Yeats in the Cross Country at 16-1.

We know Emmet Mullins’ National hero is not going for the Gold Cup this year.

So what better way to prep for another tilt at the Aintree title than with a run in the 3m6f grueller?

How we’re doing so far

The Good, the Bad and the downright Ugly rather describes my ante-post portfolio for Cheltenham.

OK, OK, I’m being a little harsh . . . there are plenty of decent bets in there and I should be more confident.

Let’s start with the good…

STAY AWAY FAY has a big chance in the Brown Advisory and we have £30 win on him at 10-1. Our tenner each-way on CORBETTS CROSS at 10-1 is still live.

FIREFOX is one of our biggest punts with £40 on him at 10-1 for the Supreme and £30 on at a mix of 10s and 8s for the Ballymore.

He runs in a Grade 1 at Naas tomorrow and a big win there is what we want.

Other bets to note are £25 each-way at 16s on FLANKING MANEUVER and £20 win on FAVORI DE CHAMPDOU at 12s for the National Hunt Chase.

I’m still sweet on IT’S FOR ME at 10-1 for the Supreme and I reckon our £20 each-way is a cracking bet.

A similar comment applies to BANBRIDGE who can be a contender in the Ryanair. We have £15 each-way at 12s.

PREDATORS GOLD is improving and we’ve a tenner each-way at 20s for the Albert Bartlett.

We’ve put the same bet on HALKA DU TABERT at 12s in the Mares’ Chase and L’HOMME PRESSE in the Gold Cup at 16s.

Now comes the bad . . . Our £25 each-way on CORBETTS CROSS at 12s for the Turners is unlikely to come up.

We had a tenner each-way on IROKO at 20s for the Brown Advisory but he is out.

We also backed up with GIOVINCO in the same race, but that bet has been ripped up.

HOME BY THE LEE looks a dud for the Stayers and STELLAR STORY has a bit to prove in the Albert Bartlett.

And finally, for the ugly . . . We lumped on TULLYHILL and It will take a miracle for him to win at the Festival.

Both MIGHTY BANDIT and DADDY LONG LEGS have it all to do as well.

We’re still in the game though – so keep the faith.

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