led, soon 15 lengths clear, headed approaching 3 out, soon weakened, tailed off
chased leaders, ridden to chase leading pair after 3 out, weakened next
chased leaders, led approaching 3 out, hung left from next, stayed on, driven out
held up, good headway after 7th, challenged 2 out, switched right and ran green approaching last, no extra
mid-division, struggling from 4th, not fluent 2 out, went moderate 4th approaching last
chased leaders, went 2nd briefly 3 out, soon ridden and weakened, tailed off
chased clear leader until 5th, soon weakened, tailed off when mistake last
behind from 4th, tailed off and pulled up after 6th
New Team deserved his success at Uttoxeter last time but Robert Alner's gelding may struggle under a penalty to give weight away to Otto des Pictons, who gets the vote with Back Among Friends rated the best of the rest. The selection showed plenty of promise on his debut in an Aintree bumper last month and is sure to have been well schooled by trainer Paul Nicholls ahead of his hurdling debut on a surface that should suit. Carl Llewellyn could hardly have his team in better form at present so For All Mankind has to be respected but he would need to improve on his bumper form to take a hand here, while Jonjo O'Neill's Primary Goal has given little sign for encouragement of late and is probably best watched. Jim Old's Back Among Friends, a bumper winner on his racecourse debut, has failed to progress as much as anticipated and a better bet looks to be Otto des Pictons.
Back Among Friends 10-1 (11-5) Led, jumping left, headed before 4 out, soon weakened, 7th of 14, 47l behind Dream Alliance (11-5) at Chepstow 2m 4f mdn hdl (4) sft in Jan.
Chery D'or (FR) (10-8) 2nd of 5, 1 1/2l behind Ali (10-6) at Nimes 3m 1f chs gd in Aug '05.
For All Mankind 4-1jt-fav (11-4) Chased leaders, ridden 4f out, weakened, 7th of 13, 46l behind Pangbourne (11-11) at Folkestone 2m 1f nhf (6) gs in Feb.
Otto des Pictons (FR) 11-4 (11-0) Held up, headway over 2f out, ridden and edged left over 1f out, one pace, 5th of 11, 9l behind Super Nick (11-0) at Aintree 2m 1f nhf (4) gd in Oct.
Primary Goal (IRE) 40-1 (10-5) Mistakes, always behind, 17th of 19, well behind Spear Thistle (10-12) at Leicester 2m nov hdl (4) gf.
Scaramouche 6-1 (10-12) Set moderate pace, headed approaching 3 out, soon weakened, 5th of 11, 48l behind Here's Johnny (10-7) at Uttoxeter 2m 4f nh nov hdl (4) sft in Oct.
Spartan Encore 25-1 (10-13) Led and soon clear, headed 3f out, weakened quickly, 7th of 10, 30l behind Tisseman (11-2) at Plumpton 2m 2f mdn nhf (6) gd in Oct.
Cliffords Lady Petoski mare, half-sister to winning jumpers Minioso & Argento.
Imtouchingwood 50-1 (10-2) Always behind and pulled up 4 out in race won by West End Wonder (10-5) at Worcester 2m 4f nov hdl (E) gd in Jul '05, 17 ran.
New Team (FR) 9-4fav (10-12) Always prominent, not fluent 5th, kept on well from last to lead near finish, won at Uttoxeter 2m mdn hdl (5) sft in Oct beating Milton Star (10-12) by a hd, 16 ran.
Best Deal 66-1 (10-7) Held up mid-division, ridden 7th, weakened next, 10th of 12, well behind Bajan Sunshine (10-12) at Fakenham 2m 4f nov hdl (4) gd in Oct.
