held up in rear, blundered 11th, ridden and looked struggling next, still plenty to do when picked up approaching 2 out, led last, soon clear
held up, headway after 3 out, soon 2nd and travelling well, led on inside 2 out, tired and headed last, weakened run-in
chased leaders, went 2nd 9th until weakened after 3 out
tracking leader when fell 3rd
rear, blundered 6th, tailed off 4 out, pulled up 2 out
led 2nd at 3rd, led 6th, headed 2 out, soon lost place, rallied run-in, took 2nd near finish
led to 6th, chased leader, mistake 9th, ridden 11th, weakened after 3 out, tailed off
held up, headway to chase leaders after 6th, outpaced after 3 out, rallied run-in, went 3rd near finish
The hat-trick seeking SPANCHIL HILL can cope with a penalty against the likes of Elliot and Enroblim Trop. And the mount of Tom Scudamore is fancied to take this moderate contest by the scruff of the neck. The selection has really found his form of late and has obviously settled in well at Jim Best's yard in East Sussex. The change of scenery combined with clever placement has already reaped a fair reward. And this winning formula is worth persevering with again today. Elliot has poor completion figures and he obviously needs to sharpen up his concentration. That said, he was still in contention when he fell last time out so is no forlorn hope if he keeps his mind on the job. Enroblim Trop is another whose profile could be better and he faces no easy task under the terms of the race. Still, he makes far more appeal to make the frame than Lutin Collonges, Auburn Grey and National Diploma, whose form figures are all littered with the letters F and P. A simple 'poor' minus any ineloquent prefixes sums up their form adequately. In summary, Spanchil Hill is the only contender arriving on a high note and need only run to his recent form to add to his tally.
Enroblim Trop (IRE) 7-1 (11-1) Tracked leaders, blundered 1st and ran out at the 2nd in race won by Keltic Moon (11-1) at Towcester 2m 3f chs 0-95 (5) sft in Nov, 8 ran.
Spanchil Hill 11-10fav (10-4) Held up in rear but in touch, headway to track leading pair 9th, went 2nd 4 out, led approaching 2 out, driven and all out run in, finished tired, won at Plumpton 3m 2f nov hcp chs 0-100 (4) sft in Nov beating Its A Classic (11-1) by.
Rock Captain (IRE) 200-1 (10-7) Hit 1st, lost touch 12th, tailed off, 7th of 8, well behind Lodge Lane (10-12) at Exeter 3m nov chs (3) sft in Nov.
Elliott 5-1 (9-11) In touch, not fluent 6th, travelling strongly when fell 5 out in race won by Hasanpour (10-9) at Huntingdon 3m 2f cnd hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gs in Nov, 10 ran.
No Telling (IRE) 8-1 (10-6) Jumped right 3rd, held up towards rear, raced keenly, no chance from 8th, tailed off, 6th of 11, 49l behind Thievery (10-0) at Warwick 2m hcp chs 0-105 (4) gs in Nov.
National Diploma (IRE) 25-1 (10-0) In touch to 4 out, tailed off, 8th of 12, well behind Desert Secrets (11-12) at Leicester 2m 4f cnd hcp chs (5) gd in Nov.
Auburn Grey 12-1 (10-0) Led, headed approaching 3 out, weakened, 5th of 9, 39l behind Willy The Slip (11-12) at Lingfield 3m nov hcp chs 0-90 (5) hvy in Nov.
Lutin Collonges (FR) 14-1 (10-0) Tracked leaders, lost pace 4th, headway 9th, led 4 out, soon ridden and headed weakened next, 4th of 5, 22l behind Gotontheluckyone (10-2) at Fontwell 2m 2f cnd hcp chs (5) gs in Nov.
