tracked leaders, brief effort over 1f out, not quickened, soon eased
towards rear, headway 2f out, strong run on inside to lead well inside final furlong
behind, ridden over 2f out, strong run inside final furlong, finished well and gaining towards finish
in touch, ridden 3f out, outpaced over 2f out, headway and effort over 1f out, not quickened, weakened inside final furlong
always behind
started slowly, towards rear, ridden over 2f out, stayed on same pace from over 1f out, never nearer
took keen hold in mid-division, ridden 3f out, soon outpaced and well behind
in touch, ridden over 2f out, effort over 1f out, kept on final furlong
started slowly, soon prominent on outer, ridden over 4f out, soon lost place and in rear, eased over 1f out, tailed off
started slowly, in rear, headway on outer over 1f out, finished strongly to take 2nd towards finish, not reached winner
held up, headway and not clear run over 1f out, stayed on final furlong, not reached leaders
led, hung left of bend 2f out, hard ridden over 1f out, headed well inside final furlong and lost 2nd towards finish
tracked leader 3f, stayed prominent until no headway and weakened 2f out
behind, rapid headway to track leader after 3f, effort over 2f out, hanging right over 1f out, weakened quickly inside final furlong
Turner's Touch has experience of the All Weather and is preferred to Crossbow Creek in this company, while Scamperdale and Crocodile Bay also make the shortlist as others to bear in mind. Crocodile Bay was placed in Listed grade as a juvenile but struggled with the handicapper last year. However, he is now on a fair mark and comes here on the back of a couple of encouraging efforts. That said, although his breeding suggests the trip should not be a problem, the form book tells another story; so a cautious approach is advised where Brian Meehan's charge is concerned. Scamperdale has been very consistent at Wolverhampton, so there is every reason to suggest he should handle the surface as he makes his debut at Kempton. Francis Norton has been in flying form of late and his presence in the saddle is a positive move for the son of Compton Place. A bold bid can be expected. Crossbow Creek likes the jumps course here and will be in familiar surroundings. However, there has to be a query about his ability to handle an artificial surface, so, although respected, he may be best watched on this occasion. Which brings us to Turner's Touch - a tough and reliable sort that has at least made the frame in 50% of his AW outings. The return to 10 furlongs will suit the five-year-old ideally and this dual course winner is fancied to be a difficult rival to get to grips with in the opener.
Mystic Storm 6-1 (8-5) Tracked leaders and keen, ridden over 2f out, weakened over 1f out, 7th of 10, 9l behind Shumookh (8-12) at Pontefract 1m 3yo hcp (3) gd in Aug.
Love Brothers 20-1 (9-0) Mid-division, effort when hampered over 2f out, not recover, 15th of 16, 23l behind Filios (9-3) at York 1m 4f 3yo hcp (4) gd in May.
