chased leaders to 4 out, soon weakened
led to 4th, tracked leader, effort to lead again 3 out, headed next, soon ridden and one pace
chased leaders, hit 9th, soon lost place, tailed off from 3 out
tracked leaders, led 6th, headed 3 out, no impression from next
soon towards rear, outpaced 4 out, kept on under pressure from next, never nearer
mid-division on outside, hit 8th, soon lost place and behind
in touch, headway 4 out, effort and every chance next, ridden and one pace approaching last
mid-division, effort 4 out, no impression from next
with leader, led 4th to 6th, chased leaders, weakened 3 out
behind, hit 9th, soon outpaced, headway on outside approaching 3 out, soon ridden, kept on same pace
held up in rear, steady headway 12th, led 2 out, ridden and stayed on well flat
No fewer than six of the 11 declared runners for this handicap chase were winners last time including Tony Carroll's CEOPERK, who won with any amount in hand on soft ground at Hereford last week and she is taken to defy the penalty for that success, getting the vote ahead of Royal Hilarity and Justwhateverulike. The last mentioned deserved his success at Sedgefield last time but a 5lb rise for that win leaves him with more to do today. Whatcanyasay was another last time out Sedgefield winner but he too has more on here and of more interest may be recent Newcastle winner More Like It, who beat Shelomoh, who has franked the form with two subsequent wins and is only 4lbs higher now. Sue Bradburne's Or de Grugy is one of the few runners in this race not to have won last time but he has been running well and looks fairly treated. Peter Bowen's Royal Hilarity was an easy winner at Folkestone last time and he has every chance if handling the testing ground conditions. The nine-year-old has yet to prove that he handles ground as testing as is on offer today though and a safer bet looks to be Ceoperk.
Flake 28-1 (10-4) Led, headed 3 out, ridden and one pace from next, 4th of 17, 9l behind Greenbelt (10-6) at Catterick 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-130 (3) gs.
Or de Grugy (FR) 7-1 (11-12) Prominent, ridden after 5 out, kept on one pace from next, 3rd of 10, 9l behind Watch My Back (11-2) at Musselburgh 2m hcp chs 0-120 (3) gd in Dec.
Nobel (FR) 20-1 (11-7) Tracked leaders, lost touch 5th, blundered 5 out, soon beaten, 4th of 7, well behind Go Silver Bullet (11-2) at Musselburgh 2m hcp chs 0-115 (4) gd in Dec.
Blast The Past 4-1 (10-12) Tracked leaders, ridden and weakened 3 out, 9th of 16, 46l behind Bedizen (11-2) at Wetherby 2m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) sft in Dec.
Ceoperk (IRE) 10-3 (11-0) Chased leader to 3rd, 2nd again 5th, led 4 out, drew clear from 3 out, won at Hereford 2m mrs beg chs (4) sft beating Annie's Answer (11-0) by 16l, 6 ran.
Cardington 13-2 (11-0) With leader, led 4 out, ridden after 3 out, kept on gamely towards finish, won at Bangor 2m 1f nov chs (4) gf in Aug '06 beating Wiscalitus (11-6) by 1/2l, 3 ran.
Justwhateverulike (IRE) 4-1 (11-5) Mid-division, ridden after 3 out, kept on from approaching last to lead run-in, driven out, won at Sedgefield 2m hcp chs 0-105 (4) sft in Dec beating Stagecoach Amber (11-2) by 1 1/2l, 10 ran.
More Like It (IRE) 9-2 (11-8) In touch, led narrowly 2 out, soon ridden, left 3 lengths clear last, held on under pressure near finish, won at Newcastle 2m nov hcp chs 0-105 (4) sft in Dec beating Shelomoh (10-9) by 3/4l, 7 ran.
Royal Hilarity (IRE) 9-4fav (11-5) Chased leaders, mistake 3rd, challenged 8th, hit next and 10th, led 3 out, well in command before next, eased run-in, won at Folkestone 2m 5f hcp chs 0-95 (5) gs beating Tosula (11-9) by 15l, 10 ran.
Whatcanyasay 8-1 (10-7) Chased leaders, mistake 8th, led approaching 2 out, kept on well, won at Sedgefield 2m 4f hcp chs 0-105 (4) sft in Dec beating Easby Mandarin (11-2) by 1/2l, 13 ran.
De Boitron (FR) 9-1 (10-11) Towards rear, ridden and chased leaders 3 out, gradually weakened from next, 5th of 10, 15l behind Justwhateverulike (11-5) at Sedgefield 2m hcp chs 0-105 (4) sft in Dec.
