Welcome to I, Punter, in which the author muses on life (health permitting!) and recommends a weekly bet. Where was I? When the journalist Jeffrey Bernard was off on a bender and unable to provide his weekly column for The Spectator , the magazine would merely print the following apology on an otherwise blank page: Jeffrey Bernard is unwell . My absence from Blogger has not been due to a bender, but I have been unwell, albeit not to such an extent that it has required me to take time off work or retire to my sick bed. But I have been taking it easy, and I still am, so this will likely be my last blog entry of the 2023-2024 football season. At least I will end it in profit. And what better time to bow out than the weekend of The Grand National? (Winner below.) On Monday, whilst child #1 (birth order) was at Alton Towers with her friends, we took child #2 and child #3 (the dog) to Vicar Water Country Park for a gentle strol...