prominent, slow 3rd, led 9th, headed narrowly after 3 out, led again next, ridden clear flat
mostly in touch, slow 1st, not fluent 5th, led after 3 out, headed 2 out, no extra flat
led 1st, not fluent 7th, headed 9th, weakened after 3 out
held up, mistake 9th, headway 3 out, every chance 2 out, switched left before last, held by winner flat, stayed on same pace
chased leaders, not fluent 3 out, soon weakened
held up, raced on the inside, headway 3 out, went 3rd flat, unable to challenge
led until 1st, prominent, lost place 7th, last next, behind 3 out
tracked leaders, challenged 9th, weakened after 3 out, pulled up before next
Colby has placed in a couple of maidens and this trip may well bring about some improvement. The longer distance should also suit Djin Conti, who remains unexposed, while Our Reward has a decent strike-rate over timber and was second off this mark over course and distance last month. RAINY CITY has been chasing this year but returns to hurdles on a potentially lenient mark. Neither trip or ground will be a problem so Donald McCain’s charge gets the vote. Too Many Chiefs hasn’t sparkled in either run this season and runs his best races north of the border.
Too Many Chiefs (IRE) 18-1 (11-12) Pressed leader, led 7th, headed 3 out, soon ridden and lost place, weakened from last, 5th of 10, 22 1/4l behind Top Billing (10-0) at Carlisle 3m 1f hcp (2) hvy in Dec.
Rainy City (IRE) 16-1 (11-12) Mid-division, headway 11th, outpaced 4 out, ridden after 2 out, stayed on into modest 4th before last, no chance with leaders, 4th of 11, 15 1/4l behind Geronimo (11-4) at Ayr 3m hcp (4) hvy in Nov.
Our Reward (IRE) 5-1 (11-13) Tracked leader, led narrowly before 3rd, ridden and headed before 2 out, soon no chance with winner, stayed on when hard pressed for 2nd flat, 2nd of 9, 11l behind One Night In Milan (11-12) at Catterick 3m 1f hcp (4) gd in Nov.
Djin Conti (FR) 2-1 (11-12) Tracked leader until after 6th, 2nd again 7th until 4 out, one pace before last, no extra flat, 3rd of 6, 13l behind Burn Baby Byrne (11-5) at Ludlow 2m 5f hcp (4) gd in Nov.
Colby (IRE) 9-2 (10-12) Tracked leaders on inside, went 2nd before 2 out, soon ridden, upsides and every chance flat, kept on, just held, 2nd of 10, shd behind Ask Paddington (10-12) at Sedgefield 2m 5f mdn (4) gd in Nov.
Boruma (IRE) 9-1 (11-7) Held up mid-division, still there but going well enough when fell 3 out, at Catterick 3m 1f hcp (4) gd in Nov.
Sevenballs Of Fire (IRE) 33-1 (11-3) Led, headed 2nd, tracked leader, ridden and weakened approaching 3 out, 8th of 9, 32l behind Tomkevi (11-11) at Wetherby 3m hcp (4) sft in Dec.
Grand Enterprise 50-1 (11-11) Always towards rear, tailed off and pulled up before 3 out, at Doncaster 3m hcp (4) gd in Nov.
