Hulysse Royal can come out on top in a fascinating clash of two highly promising young hurdlers at Newbury today.

There is no sign that racing is winding down for Christmas on the penultimate day's action before a seasonal break, with a host of decent prospects in action at the day's two jumps meetings.

And the New Stand Intermediate Hurdle at Newbury could be one of the races of the season. Champion trainer Martin Pipe's Mr Cool is not one to oppose lightly.

The six-year-old won each of his three starts in National Hunt Flat races last season and has since gone on to lift his first four outings over hurdles before running a close second in the Gerry Feilden Hurdle here last month.

But he may meet his match in Oliver Sherwood's Hulysse Royal.

This gelding made a scintillating reappearance at Cheltenham where he cruised home in a very valuable handicap in the style of a smart hurdler in the making.

He remains open to considerable improvement after just four races over jumps and can get the better of his main rival.

Steel Blade may see off recent impressive course winner High Word in another potentially exciting battle for the Chris Graham 50th Birthday Handicap Chase.

Though unlikely ever to reach the heights of his dual King George VI Chase-winning half-brother One Man, the grey has won two of just three career starts to date for Nicky Henderson.

And the emphatic way he secured victory in a novice chase at Taunton last season suggests he could be well treated off 11st 2lb today.

Frogmarch appears the pick of the weights in the Tote Quick Pick Hurdle and should be all the better for his recent reappearance second at Southwell.

Len Lungo's unbeaten six-year-old Skippers Cleuch heads the promising horses in action at Newcastle, where he will be hot favourite to land a fifth win on the bounce in the EBF National Hunt Novices' Hurdle.

But his stable-companion, Lord Of The Sky, may find it tough to defy a treble penalty against Sue Smith's Errand Boy, who was his superior over hurdles and is 18lb better off at the weights today compared with the pair's chasing debut at Carlisle, where he would have finished second but for falling four fences from home.

Eddie Ahern is to bolster the foreign riding division in Singapore where he will join the likes of Darryll Holland, Jimmy Fortune and Olivier Doleuze. This follows the announcement by the Singapore Turf Club that Ahern, granted a visiting jockey's licence as of December 15th, will be riding in a freelance capacity until March 4th.

Fourth in the Irish jockeys' championship with 65 winners, Ahern, able to do 8st 3lb, can draw on plenty of overseas experience, as the 23-year-old's roll of honour this year includes wins in the American Derby, the Norwegian 2,000 Guineas, the Stockholm Cup and the Swedish St Leger.

Back home, Ahern's big race successes have taken in the Moyglare Stud Stakes (1999) plus successive editions of the Goffs 100,000 Challenge Stakes.