made all, clear from 12th, eased towards finish
held up towards rear, ridden approaching 13th, went 3rd at 13th, disputed 2nd 2 out, soon chasing winner, no impression
tracked leaders, chased winner from 9th, disputed 2nd 2 out until weakened approaching last
held up towards rear, weakened from 12th, soon pulled up
chased leaders, lost place 4th, tailed off when pulled up after 9th
tracked leaders, weakened 11th, pulled up before 13th
FAIR QUESTION holds a class advantage here and can return from his absence in winning form; Areyacoddinmee and Hasper are the pair most likely to make a race of it. Donald McCain has few runners in this sphere so it's interesting he's brought this gelding back to have a pop at winning a Hunters' Chase. Rated 125 when coming to grief in a decent race when last seen, the 12-year-old is of a standard above what the rest can achieve and should win this if anywhere near his best with conditions no hindrance. Areyacoddinmee is an out-and-out stayer who did well to win at Catterick last time and, as he has no fitness questions to answer, he'll do for many. He should be fine with the likely testing ground and as a winner in the grade must enter calculations, but our feeling is he meets an above-average sort in our selection and may have to settle for second. Hasper is versatile ground-wise and can usually be relied upon at this level, so having had a decent pipe-opener between the flags he's got place prospects although again he will do well to win barring accidents. Know The Ropes has struggled to get anywhere close since returning from a three-year break, Trisons Star was running poorly when last seen under rules and hasn't been lighting up the point-to-point world in the interim whilst Silk Parasol may not want ground as testing as it is here. This is more interesting than many races of its kind owing to the appearance of Fair Question who should have all the answers.
Fair Question (IRE) 15-2 (11-1) Tracked clear leader until fell 12th, in a race won by Merigo (11-1) at Newcastle 4m 1f hcp chs (2) hvy in Feb '09, 13 ran.
Hasper 4-1 (11-0) Lost tch 11; to, 4th of 5, well behind High Five (11-0) at Friars Haugh 3m ptp gd in Mar.
Areyacoddinmee (IRE) 16-1 (11-5) Mid-division, blundered 11th, headway 3 out, ran on well to lead towards finish, won at Catterick 3m 1f nov hts chs (6) gd in Mar beating Racing Ace (11-9) by 2 1/4l, 16 ran.
Know The Ropes (IRE) 28-1 (11-9) Tracked leaders, fell 6th, in a race won by Quotica De Poyans (11-7) at Kelso 3m 1f hts chs (5) gs in Mar, 13 ran.
Silver Palomino 40-1 (11-7) Chased leaders, lost place 10th, soon beaten, 5th of 11, 38l behind Craiglands (11-5) at Sedgefield 2m 4f nov hts chs (6) gf in Apr '09.
Trisons Star (IRE) 14-1 (12-5) Led to 3; to 14, last of 4, well behind Briscoe Place (12-5) at Overton 3m ptp gf in Mar.
Silk Parasol (IRE) 2-1 (10-7) Prsd wnr til outpcd aft 3 out, 2nd of 4, 12l behind High Five (11-0) at Friars Haugh 3m ptp gs in Mar.
