The greatest horse race in the world is no longer the lottery it once was. It tends now to be won by serious players at the top of the betting market and most of the field can be ignored for betting purposes.

This year's Aintree Grand National favourite CLOUDY LANE comes with a pedigree second to none.Ginger McCain's place in history is safe. However his son Donald is a far more accomplished trainer and will,I believe, go on to be as distinguished as his father.

The horse has had the perfect preparation,stays well,has a turn of feet,jumps impeccably.
He is unbeaten in his last 3 starts,but will now start at a ludicrously short price and if you are not already on,I would look elsewhere for value SLIM PICKINGS was 3rd last year and has been readied all season for this one race.
He is trained by one of the shrewdest of Irishmen and  was given a couple of outings over hurdles before Christmas.Woudn't want the ground to dry out too much,but must be on the shortlist.
L'AMI is trained by the french wizard that is Francois Doumen,The man is a genius and his charge has dropped dramatically in the weights and has returned to form with a really meritorious effort last time out.He is a big price and a few quid e/w would not go amiss

COMPLY OR DIE must come into the picture in a very big way.Trained by the amiable David Pipe,Timmy Murphy had no hesitation in choosing him as his National mount. Having won The Eider Chase,there are no stamina doubts at all.The blinkers seem to have had a revitalising effect on him and he would also look caste iron for the frame (remember many bookmakers will be paying e/w the first 5)
SIMON has improved again this season and as long as his jumping holds up he will certainly take a hand in the finish.The massive bonus is that Andrew Thornton is injured (a 10 lb penalty for any horse) and that impish gladiator Dominic Elsworth takes the ride.A really big plus in my book and gives SIMON an oustanding chance,especially if the ground remains good/soft.
If you are looking for one at a big price then you could do worse than invest a few pounds e/w on MON MOME.Venetia Williams's horses have come back into a bit of form in the last few days and this one stays well and would have a squeak at a great e/w price.
So,enjoy the race.
Watch it on RACING UK if you can,not the BBC.That is so that you won't have to listen to the three stooges stood beside Aussie Jim,prompting him on every faller and making sure that he doesn't mistake the colours (as he will have not been to bed before 3.00am and his liver may still be feeling the effects of 3 days in the hotel bar in Liverpool)
My last word on the topic is,don't bet a serious amount of money on the race.Have a bit of fun and have a little smidgen of your hard earned on L'AMI E/W (VIVE LA FRANCE)