An ordinary opener where the form of Alam should be good enough to see him home. Two seconds at Ayr and Newcastle revealed his hand and then a 17 length soft ground success back at Ayr last time confirmed that he should be good enough to follow up here, coming from a yard that does well at the track. He does of course have to carry a 7lb penalty as a result of that win, but very few others have shown anything to date and he should be able to defy the burden. Best of the rest looks to be Great As Gold, who handles soft ground and has been back on the flat of late after a couple of useful hurdles runs in the autumn. The gelding stays two miles on the level, so he will need every yard of this two and a quarter miles here, but is probably be good enough to make the forecast. Astafort was a long way behind Alam at Ayr, but does have a 7lb pull and can at least close the gap. He can make the frame.
