held up in last, progress into 5th 3f out, ridden in 3rd on outer 2f out, 2nd 1 1/2f out, kept on without threatening easy winner final furlong
tracked leaders, went 2nd 4f out, ridden in 4th 3f out, 5th 2f out, kept on one paced in 4th final furlong
held up in touch in 5th, headway into 3rd travelling well 3f out, ridden to lead over 2f out, stayed on strongly final furlong, comfortably
led, hung wide off bend after 2f, joined briefly 5f out, ridden 3f out, soon strongly pressed, headed over 2f out, dropped to 3rd 1 1/2f out, no impression
tracked leaders, ridden and dropped to 6th 4f out, soon weakened
tracked leader in 2nd, improved to dispute lead briefly 5f out, ridden in 2nd under 3f out, soon no impression
held up in touch in 6th, closer in 4th briefly 4f out, soon ridden, weakened from 3f out
With five of the seven runners having already won this looks an informative contest. Chitu ran in the Grade 2 Champion Bumper at Aintree before an easy victory at Perth in June while Cottersrock has steadily improved and was very good value for his victory here in August. Concience is another progressive type though she's done better over slightly further and Tombstone is another who could be suited by a longer trip as his victory at Naas was over 2m3f. The latter has a smart pedigree and looks a nice type for the future but an absence since January could just swing things in favour of CHAIN GANG. Alan Fleming's four-year-old takes on older horses for the first time but there was much to like about his victory on very testing ground at Listowel and today's better conditions should be in his favour.
Chitu (IRE) 11-10fav (11-0) Held up in touch, tracked leaders 6f out, led inside final 2f, driven clear inside final furlong, stayed on well, won at Perth 2m (6) gd in Jun beating Blessed King (11-0) by 4 1/2l, 6 ran.
Cottersrock (IRE) 3-1fav (12-0) Settled behind leaders, 4th halfway, closer in 3rd 3f out, challenged 2f out, led 1 1/2f out, ridden over 1f out, kept on strongly final furlong, comfortably, won at Down Royal 2m Good - Yielding in Aug beating Se Mo Laoch (11-9) by 4 3/4l, 9 ran.
Tombstone (IRE) 10-3fav (11-12) Mid-division, travelled well into 6th 3f out, 4th 2f out, improved to lead over 1f out, ridden and pressed inside final furlong, kept on well closing stages, won at Naas 2m 3f sft in Jan beating Potters Point (11-12) by 1 1/4l, 14 ran.
Chain Gang 5-6fav (11-7) Led, joined approaching straight, ridden and narrowly headed from 2f out, regained lead final furlong and stayed on well, won at Listowel 2m Soft - Heavy in Sep beating Robbing The Prey (11-7) by 1 3/4l, 9 ran.
Aye Paddy Too (IRE) 40-1 (12-0) Held up, 13th early, no impresson from 6f out, no extra from 3f out, 16th of 20, dist behind Okotoks (12-0) at Down Royal 2m Yielding in May.
Concience (IRE) 7-2fav (11-7) Tracked leaders in 3rd, 2nd from 4f out, soon clear of remainder, ridden to lead 2 1/2f out, stayed on well under pressure final furlong, won at Downpatrick 2m 2f gd in Oct beating Thinkinginmysleep (11-10) by 4 1/2l, 10 ran.
The Dealer (IRE) Gamut gelding out of Along Came Polly.
