held up, headway and in touch 5th, led 8th, hard pressed 2 out, soon ridden, edged right flat, held on under pressure near finish
tracked leaders, lost place 8th, no danger after
held up on outside, pushed along 7th, headway to join leaders 8th, outpaced when hit 3 out, weakened and pulled up before next
mid-division, reminders from 3rd, soon struggling, behind from 5th, tailed off when pulled up before 2 out
mid-division, headway and in touch 6th, lost place next, soon lost touch, tailed off when pulled up before 2 out
tracked leader, led 3rd to 5th, led again next, headed when hit 8th, soon lost place, tailed off when pulled up before 2 out
held up, headway 8th, short lived effort 3 out, soon weakened, no chance with leading pair
led to 3rd, tracked leader, led again 5th to next, weakened 3 out, tailed off
TILT, Milans Man and Persian Gates are the trio for the shortlist here and the vote goes to Tilt. Brian Ellison has made a good start to the year and Tilt could prove to be a decent performer for him in this sphere. He was useful on the flat and he won well on his hurdling debut here last month when he beat Meridian City. The ground will not be a problem for him and he looks a good bet to go in again. Howard Johnson also has his string in really good form so Milans Man could be of interest given that he won well at Sedgefield last month and he has ground conditions to suit. Persian Gates ran his best race over hurdles at Southwell when last seen out in November and he will again try and dictate the pace from the front. He will probably make a better chaser in time, but he should win his fair share over hurdles in the meantime. Saddlers Deal was well beaten on his debut in a bumper and he is hard to fancy off the back of that effort, and Tilt is put forward as the confident choice.
Milans Man (IRE) 4-1 (10-12) In touch, headway to lead 3 out, drew clear approaching last, driven out, won at Sedgefield 2m 4f nov hdl (4) sft in Dec beating Macs Island (10-12) by 11l, 12 ran.
Persian Gates (IRE) 5-1 (10-12) Led 3rd, made rest, clear before last, ridden out, won at Southwell 2m 4f nh nov hdl (4) gf in Nov beating Promising Anshan (10-12) by 6l, 10 ran.
Tilt 7-1 (10-12) With leader, led 3rd, hit and headed 4th, regained lead 3 out, stayed on well from last, won at Catterick 2m 3f nh nov hdl (4) gs in Dec beating Meridian City (11-5) by 4l, 15 ran.
Fast Forward (NZ) 16-1 (10-11) Tracked leaders, pushed along 10th, weakened next, pulled up before 12th, in a race won by Mr Strachan (11-4) at Hexham 3m 1f hcp chs 0-135 (3) hvy in Dec, 10 ran.
Jurisdiction 10-1 (10-12) Held up, ridden to chase leaders approaching 3 out, soon no impression, stayed on to go moderate 3rd and jumped left last, 3rd of 9, 15l behind Frankie Anson (10-12) at Wetherby 2m 4f nh nov hdl (4) sft in Nov.
Once Before (IRE) 28-1 (11-7) Tracked leaders, lost place when mistake 7th, soon weakened, pulled up 3 out, in a race won by Shanballa (11-0) at Cartmel 2m 5f beg chs (4) sft in Aug, 8 ran.
Saddlers Deal (IRE) 3-1fav (11-2) Held up, in touch over 3f out, soon outpaced, 6th of 11, 42l behind Benny Be Good (11-2) at Sedgefield 2m 1f NH flat (6) gd in Nov.
Saddlers Mount (IRE) 6-1 (12-0) Twrds rr of mid div, 8th & sl prog aftr 5out, further prog in 2nd bef 2out, chall last, ld 50 yards out, won at Kinsale 3m ire ptp gd in May beating Six Of Us (11-9) by 1l, 14 ran.
Scrum V 125-1 (10-9) Led to 6th, weakened 2 out, 8th of 12, 18l behind Alvarado (10-12) at Carlisle 2m 1f nh nov hdl (4) gf in Oct.
Bled (FR) 100-1 (10-12) Tracked leaders, weakened 7th, 6th of 11, 27l behind Moleskin (10-12) at Exeter 2m 5f nov hdl (3) hvy in Nov.
