slight lead when went badly left and bumped rival 1st, headed 3rd, chased leader, reminders after 4 out, pushed along and lost 2nd home turn, 3rd and weakening when pulled up before 3 out
raced keenly tracking leaders on inside, led 3rd and set steady pace, headed 3 out, ridden between last two, weakened before the last
tracked leaders, went left 4th, 3rd before 6th, went 2nd on inside home turn, ridden to lead and awkward 3 out, ridden next, wandered approaching last, soon clear
raced wide, chased leader, bumped 1st, chased leaders, weakened 4 out, left modest 4th next
held up in last pair, outpaced and lost touch 4 out, left modest 3rd 3 out
last pair, outpaced and struggling 4 out, tailed off
The two previous winners should dominate here. Colorado Doc is a decent chaser but, over the smaller obstacles, HARPER’S BROOK should have his measure. Ben Pauling’s charge has been running in Grade 2 company since beating a subsequent winner on his hurdling bow at Carlisle.
Colorado Doc 9-1 (11-12) Tracked leader, led 5t, headed 13th, led again next, ridden and headed 3 out, jumped left at last, plugged on, 2nd of 8, 34l behind El Paso Wood (10-5) at Wincanton 3m 3f hcp (3) gs in Jan.
Harper's Brook (IRE) 22-1 (11-5) Led until fell 3rd, at Cheltenham 2m 4f (1) gd in Jan.
Bluffmeifyoucan 100-1 (11-1) Always behind, never a factor, tailed off, 9th of 11, dist behind Abuffalosoldier (11-1) at Wincanton 2m 4f (4) gs in Jan.
Demothi (IRE) 200-1 (11-5) Disputed lead, headed and pushed along after 3 out, ridden and weakened home turn, 6th of 9, 16l behind Farmer's Gamble (11-5) at Wincanton 1m 7f (4) sft in Feb.
Just Loose Change 40-1 (10-12) Chased leaders until lost place 4th, never on terms after, tailed off before 3 out, 6th of 8, 24 1/4l behind Bowtogreatness (10-12) at Ffos Las 2m 4f (4) hvy in Dec.
School For Scandal (FR) 33-1 (11-7) Prominent, ridden and outpaced before 3 out, weakened, 10th of 12, dist behind Ballyblack (11-7) at Exeter 2m 6f mdn (4) gs in Feb.
