slowly into stride, towards rear, headway into 8th 2f out, ridden in 7th 1 1/2f out, no impression
mid-division, ridden and weakened over 3f out
chased leaders, 4th halfway, 3rd 2f out, ridden to lead 1f out, kept on well final furlong
chased leaders, 5th halfway, ridden in 4th 1 1/2f out, kept on final furlong to 2nd last strides
chased leaders, 7th halfway, ridden 2f out, kept on final furlong
mid-division, 8th halfway, ridden and no impression 2f out, kept on one pace
towards rear early, soon keen hold and chased leaders, led halfway, headed over 2f out, ridden in 2nd 1 1/2f out, no extra in 3rd 1f out, weakened final furlong
mid-division best, 10th and no impression 2f out, kept on one pace
always towards rear
chased leader, 3rd halfway, ridden in 5th 2f out, no extra over 1f out, kept on same pace
led, headed halfway, regained lead over 2f out, ridden and headed 1f out, kept on final furlong, lost 2nd last strides
keen hold in mid-division early, weakened halfway
chased leaders, 6th halfway, ridden and no extra 1 1/2f out
Gold Mirage makes her belated racecourse debut after being picked up for 30,000gns at Newmarket sales in December. She's beautifully bred and is one to make a note of. Hot Sand has some reasonable form here but the fact that he's still a maiden after 14 starts is off-putting while it's difficult to know what to make of Mudalalah, who has been operating on very testing ground in France over longer trips. Mick Halford won this a year ago with Desert Romance and can repeat the process with BARROW ISLAND. Unraced as a juvenile he produced a couple of excellent runs on turf last year including when third to Ancient Kingdom at Cork in October. Providing he takes to the surface he could be the one to beat.
Almuricus (IRE) 25-1 (11-4) Chased leaders, moderate 7th approaching 5 out, soon no extra, tailed off when pulled up before 2 out, in a race won by Days Hotel (11-4) at Clonmel 2m mdn hdl, 14 ran.
Armab (IRE) Sharp Charter gelding out of Illusion's Best.
Barrow Island (IRE) 6-1 (9-2) Tracked leaders in 5th, progress early straight, 3rd 1 1/2f out, kept on under pressure inside final furlong, 3rd of 17, 2 1/4l behind Ancient Kingdom (9-0) at Cork 1m 3yo mdn gd in Oct.
Hot Sand (IRE) 4-1 (8-12) Chased leaders, 4th halfway, 6th under 2f out, kept on same pace, 5th of 9, 3l behind Sampers (9-4) at Dundalk 6f 3yo stks pol in Dec.
Pivotal Rock (IRE) 9-2 (11-7) 6th of 12, 44l behind Cash And Go (11-2) at Thurles 2m 4yo nhf hvy in Feb.
Priority Buy (IRE) 14-1 (8-13) Held up in 5th, ridden over 2f out, closed over 1f out, one pace entering final furlong, 5th of 6, 8l behind I Confess (8-4) at Kempton 1m clm stks (6) pol.
Some Slam (IRE) 10-3 (9-10) Slowly away, some headway approaching straight, went 5th 2f out, soon no extra, 5th of 9, 22l behind Kalann (9-2) at Dundalk 1m 4f mdn stks pol in Dec.
Arminta (USA) 33-1 (8-12) Towards rear, some late headway from over 1f out, no impression, 11th of 18, 23l behind White Front (9-3) at Navan 1m 2yo mdn aut sft in Oct '09.
Gilded Verse 50-1 (9-0) Always towards rear, 13th of 15, 23l behind Bea Remembered (9-0) at Curragh 1m mdn stks gf in Jun.
Gold Mirage (IRE) Galileo filly out of Gold Bust.
Mudalalah (IRE) (8-11) 2nd of 15, 2l behind Endoran (9-6) at Le Croise-Laroche(FR) 1m 1f 3yo stk gd in Nov.
Queen Grace (IRE) 66-1 (9-6) Never a factor, 19th of 27, 21l behind Sing Softly (9-0) at Curragh 6f mdn stks sft.
Waiting For Atrain (IRE) 50-1 (8-11) Always behind, weakened straight, 15th of 17, 29l behind Ancient Kingdom (9-0) at Cork 1m 3yo mdn gd in Oct.
Gone Global 50-1 (9-13) Prominent on stand side, ridden 2f out, soon no extra, weakened, 24th of 27, 31l behind Sing Softly (9-0) at Curragh 6f mdn stks sft.
Marching Orders (IRE) 28-1 (9-4) Chased leaders, ridden in 3rd entering straight, soon weakened, 10th of 13, 32l behind Unity (8-13) at Fairyhouse 1m 4f mdn stks gd in Jun.
Honest And True (IRE) 25-1 (9-5) Rear of mid-division, 9th halfway, no extra from 2f out, 12th of 14, 20l behind Move (9-0) at Dundalk 1m mdn stks pol in Sep.
Arakango (IRE) 10-1 (8-11) Always behind, eased final furlong, last of 14, 16l behind Motto Bello (8-3) at Dundalk 6f 2yo flls auc std in Aug '09.
