close up on inside, outpaced approaching 3 out, soon weakened
held up, headway on outside 4 out, weakened from next
mid-division, driven to chase leaders approaching 3 out, ridden and kept on same pace from next, no impression
chased leaders, lost place 7th, soon behind
held up, headway 3 out, ridden and effort next, no impression approaching last
chased leaders, lost place 4 out, soon beaten
tracked winner, led 6th, headed before 3 out, soon ridden, one pace from next
mid-division, headway 3 out, ridden next, kept on same pace flat
held up in rear, headway on outside 4 out, led before next, ridden and mistake 2 out, headed between last 2, edged left last, kept on flat
mid-division, outpaced 3 out, soon ridden, kept on same pace from next, no impression
led to 6th, tracked leader, ridden and rallied to lead again between last 2, kept on under pressure flat
It will be interesting to see how Mckelvey performs on his reappearance but he is likely to be using this as a stepping stone towards having another crack at the Grand National and is probably best watched, with preference for Lothian Falcon, who gets the vote ahead of Dundock. The last mentioned comes into this in good form having won his last two starts but a 9lb rise for the latest of them leaves him with more to do and he may be a shade high in the weights now. Leac An Scail has been heavily punished by the handicapper for an improved effort in a novice hurdle last time and is hard to recommend, while Arrayou had to work hard for his win at Newbury last time and is likely to find this tougher off his new mark. Spring Breeze has been given a chance by the handicapper and has to be respected with Ferdy Murphy's stable continuing in good form but preference is for Lothian Falcon, who has been in similarly good form over fences and hurdles of late and he is taken to follow up his recent Wetherby success.
Aleron (IRE) 13-2 (11-0) Tracked leaders, outpaced 5 out, no impression from next, 5th of 6, 21l behind Lothian Falcon (10-7) at Wetherby 3m 1f hcp chs Grd 3 (1) gs in Dec.
Mckelvey (IRE) 12-1 (10-4) Towards rear, headway 20th, chased leaders 3 out, ridden before next, edged right and stayed on strongly flat to take 2nd near finish, 2nd of 40, 3/4l behind Silver Birch (10-6) at Aintree 4m 4f hcp chs Grd 3 (1) gd in Apr.
Arrayou (FR) 20-1 (10-13) Held up, ridden, headway after 3 out, stayed on to lead flat, driven out, won at Newbury 3m hcp hdl 0-140 (2) gs in Feb beating Ofarel D'airy (10-13) by 2l, 11 ran.
Jockser (IRE) 16-1 (9-11) Mid-division, effort 8th, weakened from 3 out, tailed off, 10th of 12, well behind Leading Contender (10-0) at Cheltenham 3m hcp hdl (2) gd in Dec.
Lothian Falcon 2-1fav (10-7) Held up, smooth headway 5 out, led on bit next, 7 lenghts clear last, stayed on well, comfortably, won at Wetherby 3m 1f hcp chs Grd 3 (1) gs in Dec beating Leading Man (11-2) by 6l, 6 ran.
Spring Breeze 16-1 (11-4) Held up, weakened after 7th, last of 9, well behind Special Rate (10-8) at Bangor 3m hcp hdl 0-135 (3) sft in Dec.
Valiant Shadow (GER) 16-1 (11-7) Chased leaders, ridden approaching 8th, kept on same pace from 2 out, 5th of 11, 8l behind Stripe Me Blue (10-8) at Wincanton 2m 6f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gs in Feb.
Harry Flashman 16-1 (11-9) In rear, effort 4 out, soon weakened, tailed off when pulled up 2 out in race won by Albany (11-6) at Wetherby 2m 7f hcp hdl 0-130 (3) gs in Dec, 14 ran.
Leac An Scail (IRE) 9-1 (10-13) Held up, headway 8th, ridden to lead 2 out, headed flat, no extra towards finish, 2nd of 13, 2l behind Charlie Crab (10-12) at Catterick 3m 1f nov hdl (4) gs in Jan.
Dundock 13-2 (10-7) Tracked leaders, ridden when hit 3 out, kept on to lead last, driven out flat, won at Musselburgh 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-120 (3) gs in Feb beating The Joker (10-11) by 2l, 13 ran.
Star Beat 8-1 (10-5) Held up, headway 3 out, one pace from next, 7th of 16, 13l behind Pilca (10-1) at Newcastle 2m hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gs in Feb.
