in rear, mistake at 4th, moderate 8th 3 out, soon pushed along, modest progress straight, went moderate 4th inside final furlong
in rear when mistake and unseated rider at 1st
rear of mid-division, not fluent at 5th, 7th 3 out, headway into 3rd and ridden 2 out, moderate 3rd when jumped right at last, kept on one pace
always behind, no impression from 4 out, pulled up before 2 out
tracked leaders, improved to dispute lead and ridden 2 out, led at last, stayed on well run-in
tracked leader in 2nd, led from 7th, headed 4 out, ridden in 3rd next, dropped to moderate 6th 2 out, weakened and pulled up before last
tracked leaders, improved to lead 4 out, headed next, led again entering straight, ridden and joined 2 out, headed at last, kept on same pace in 2nd run-in
mid-division, ridden in 5th 3 out, soon no impression
led, mistake and headed 7th, improved to lead again 3 out, soon ridden and headed entering straight, dropped to 4th 2 out, soon weakened, pulled up before last
mid-division, 6th 3 out, soon ridden and no impression, moderate 5th when mistake at last, no impression
Lean Araig hasn't had much racing since completing a hat-trick over hurdles by landing a Naas Grade 2 back in 2015 and showed a bit more dash in a veterans' handicap at Limerick last month. Fully Charged, rated 130 over hurdles, has yet to get to grips with fences but Key Commander showed massive improvement when stepped up to 3m at Thurles for which he's been raised 12lb. Enjoy D'allen has gradually improved with each run over fences and was only headed on the run-in when tackling a Cork beginners' event but this looks a question of whether KING ALEX can transfer his massive improvement over hurdles to the bigger obstacles. He's now rated 125 over timber, 14lb above his chase mark, and should be very difficult to beat from this mark.
Bois De Clamart (FR) 6-1 (10-1) Waited with, slight mistake 1st, mistake 2nd, 14th at 5th, impeded 7 out, slight mistake 6 out, no extra when jumped left 3 out, 10th of 17, 26 1/2l behind Crossed My Mind (10-0) at Navan 2m 4f hcp sft in Dec.
Fully Charged 14-1 (12-0) Mid-division, 5th halfway, mistake 8th, pushed along and no impression after 3 out, no extra approaching straight, kept on one pace, 4th of 7, 36l behind The Big Getaway (12-0) at Leopardstown 2m 5f Yielding in Dec.
Oscar Academy (IRE) 66-1 (10-7) Rear of mid-division, some headway on inner after halfway, closer in 8th 2 out, pushed along and no impression early straight, kept on one pace, 8th of 20, 19 1/2l behind Dandy Mag (10-13) at Leopardstown 3m hcp sft in Dec.
Agent Boru (IRE) 10-1 (11-8) Waited with towards rear, no impression from 2 out, 16th of 18, dist behind Unexpected Depth (12-3) at Punchestown 3m hcp hvy in Dec.
Enjoy D'allen (FR) 4-1 (12-0) Chased leaders, 5th approaching 8th and raced towards outer, soon prominent, led 2 out, jumped right last and joined, headed and kept on well without quite matching winner run-in, just failed, 2nd of 14, nk behind Notice To Close (12-0) at Cork 2m 5f hvy in Nov.
Moratorium (IRE) 17-2 (11-11) Mid-division, lost place before 8th, jumped right in detached rear 4 out, pulled up 2 out (normal 3 out), at Leopardstown 2m 5f hcp Yielding in Dec.
Lean Araig (IRE) 4-1 (11-3) Tracked leaders, 4th halfway, 3rd after 3 out, ridden to challenge and almost on terms 2 out, no impression before last, kept on same pace run-in, not match winner, 2nd of 7, 2 1/4l behind Wishmoor (10-12) at Limerick 2m 7f hcp hvy in Dec.
Uaintseenothingyet 20-1 (11-3) Rear of mid-division, pushed along and no impression after 4 out, no threat in straight, kept on one pace, 7th of 13, 20 1/2l behind Jack Dillinger (11-12) at Thurles 2m 2f hcp sft in Dec.
King Alex (FR) 10-3fav (11-0) Tracked leaders, improved to dispute lead entering straight, led travelling well 3 out, ridden and strongly pressed after 2 out, slight mistake and joined at last, headed after last, kept on same pace inside final furlong, 2nd of 13, 13l behind Jukebox Jive (11-2) at Navan 2m 4f hcp Soft - Heavy in Dec.
The Dabbler (IRE) 7-2 (12-0) In rear, slight mistake 6th, closer in 6th 3 out, soon ridden, moderate 5th 2 out, kept on one pace, 4th of 9, 10 1/2l behind Bois De Clamart (12-0) at Tramore 2m 5f Yielding in Oct.
Key Commander (IRE) 14-1 (12-0) Tracked leaders, 4th halfway, headway before 2 out and led travelling well entering straight, pushed out and kept on well run-in, easily, won at Thurles 3m 1f hcp sft in Dec beating Getaday (12-0) by 8l, 14 ran.
