Southwell (AW) Tips: Thursday 18 June 2026

Southwell (AW) Tips: Thursday 18 June 2026

A seven-race card on the Fibresand at Southwell on a cloudy Thursday evening. Standard going suits horses that have shown they handle the surface, and with several yards firing well at this track, there are angles worth following across the card. Three featured races stand out for punters looking beyond the obvious.

7:30 — Southwell Racecourse Conferences And Events Novice Stakes (1m, GBB Race)

Selection: Centigrade (6/5, Boyle Sports)

Ralph Beckett’s yard has a 24% strike rate at Southwell over a significant sample and an A/E above 1.0, which tells you the yard knows how to place horses here and prices are not over-inflated. Centigrade brings form figures of 2-1 into a novice stakes, suggesting he has already hit the frame and then won. That kind of progression in a juvenile colt warrants plenty of respect on a track where experience counts. Edward Greatrex takes the ride, a booking that carries intent from the Beckett camp.

Interestingly, Beckett also saddles Burning Impact at 13/2 with Thomas Greatrex aboard, and having two runners in the same race is not unusual for the yard. But the form and the odds point to Centigrade as the stable first string. At odds-on, this is a horse to back to win rather than each-way.

At 13/2, Burning Impact is worth a small saver if you want cover, but Centigrade is the bet.

8:30 — Book The Bistro In Seasons Restaurant Fillies’ Novice Stakes (6f, GBB Race)

Selection: Planet Seeker (2/1, Boyle Sports)

Planet Seeker Each-Way arrives here with a form line reading 1-3, which in a juvenile fillies’ novice on the all-weather is strong collateral. A winner already, she finished third on her most recent start and Ralph Beckett, again a key name on this card, sends Edward Greatrex over from the opener. That combination of an in-form yard and a retained jockey doubling up on the same evening is a significant signal.

Name The Day for Eve Johnson Houghton at 9/2 is the most interesting danger. Houghton’s yard has been ticking over at a decent clip in the last fortnight and Sean Bowen is a strong booking, but the filly has only one run under her belt and finished fourth. The gap in experience and achieved form makes Planet Seeker the correct choice at 2/1.

Star Trail at 8/1 for D K Weld is unraced and the yard can be sharp on debut, so a small each-way play on her is not without merit at those odds, but the race looks Planet Seeker’s to lose.

9:00 — Golf And Gallop Southwell Golf Club Handicap (6f, Standard)

Selection: Gaurdman (9/4, Boyle Sports)

Roger Varian has a 26% win rate at Southwell from 145 runners, which is a significant sample, and his yard has been sharp in the last fortnight with seven winners from 33 runners. That is a yard firing at full throttle and you want to be with them. Gaurdman carries form figures of 6-3-1, a horse that has shown progressive improvement culminating in a win. Sean Bowen is named as jockey, an excellent booking for a horse that needs to be ridden with confidence from a prominent position over six furlongs on the Fibresand.

The 9/4 on offer across the boards represents fair value for a market leader in a nine-runner handicap, given the Varian yard stats and recent form.

Lady Kodiac at 11/2 for James Tate is worth noting. Tate’s 26% win rate at Southwell comes with an A/E of 1.08, meaning his runners genuinely outperform their odds here, and the filly’s form figures include two wins. But the dip in recent form showing a 2 and a 6 suggests something has changed, and the Varian runner looks more urgently placed.

Ghia at 9/2 for Charlie Fellowes is another to consider each-way at a price, having won twice already this season before falling back slightly, but Gaurdman is the play.

Today’s NAP

Gaurdman — Golf And Gallop Southwell Golf Club Handicap (21:00, Southwell AW)
Odds: 9/4 — Boyle Sports (others: 9/4 Betfred, 9/4 LiveScore Bet)

Roger Varian’s yard is running at a 21% strike rate from 33 runners in the last fortnight, which is a yard in form you follow, not fade. Southwell is a course where Varian wins at 26% from a large sample and crucially his A/E sits at 0.84, meaning he places horses here without overcooking the market. Gaurdman’s progression to a win last time sets him up perfectly for this six-furlong handicap on Standard Fibresand, and Sean Bowen on top is a confident booking. At 9/4 in a nine-runner field, this is as solid an anchor as tonight’s card offers.