raced freely, led, not fluent 2nd, mistake 3rd, hit 2 out, soon ridden, headed approachoing last, soon weakened
held up in last pair, not fluent 4 out, hit 2 out, ridden in 3rd approaching last, went 2nd towards finish, no chance with winner
held up, not fluent 5th, ridden to chase winner approaching last, no impression, lost 2nd towards finish
tracked leader, led approaching last, drew clear flat, easily
A tricky puzzle to solve, despite the small field. Tri Nations has won five times over hurdles and will have needed his third at Stratford while the mare Ixora also had some decent form over the smaller obstacles last season, though this looks to be on the sharp side. Onefourfun won easily at Bangor after a break but now has a penalty and possibly lacks a bit of scope so we'll take ART BROKER to make a successful start to his chase career. Good ground and a sharp track are perfect for Henry Daly's six-year-old and he may just have too much pace for his rivals if his jumping is up to scratch.
Onefourfun (IRE) 4-1 (11-9) Keen made all, soon clear, jumped well, unchallenged, heavily eased after last, won at Bangor 2m 1f nov hcp chs 0-115 (4) gs beating Maizy Missile (10-13) by 25l, 4 ran.
Art Broker (IRE) 10-1 (11-3) Tracked leaders and raced wide, ridden and one pace from 2 out, 3rd of 8, 24l behind Kealigolane (11-6) at Sedgefield 2m 2f nov hcp hdl (2) gf in Apr.
Tri Nations (UAE) 33-1 (10-12) Held up in rear, headway 10th, left 3rd when mistake and slightly hampered 3 out, dropped to 4th next, no chance with leading duo, left remote 3rd last, tailed off, 3rd of 6, well behind Domtaline (11-5) at Stratford 2m 4f nov chs (4) gd.
Ixora (IRE) 14-1 (11-9) Held up in rear, still there but only 4 lengths off pace when fell 2 out, in a race won by Kells Belle (11-10) at Cheltenham 2m 5f mrs lst hdl (1) sft in Apr, 11 ran.
