held up in touch, ridden after 15th, chased winner 3 out, no impression, weakened last, lost 2nd finish
mid-division, headway 13th, weakened 15th
held up in rear, ridden 13th, behind from next, tailed off when pulled up before 4 out
held up towards rear, mistake 5th, ridden 13th, behind when mistake next, tailed off when pulled up before 4 out
mid-division, lost place 7th, behind from next, pulled up before 12th
held up towards rear, headway approaching 7th, hit 10th, mistake 15th, soon struggling, rallied last, hung right, took 2nd towards finish, no chance with winner
led to 2nd, chased leader until 4 out, weakened 3 out
held up in rear, hit 13th, no chance from 15th, tailed off when pulled up before 4 out
tracked leading pair until led after 15th, clear approaching 4 out, mistake 3 out, eased close home
Nonrunner
A competitive handicap chase here and RANDOLPH O'BRIEN is given the vote to win it while Saunders Road, if improving his jumping is likely to prove a potent threat along with the likes of Will The Till and Loch Vic. Considering it was his first outing for five months at Towcester last time, Randolph O'Brien showed no signs of lack of match practise, putting in an excellent round of jumping. His attempts at three miles have been limited but judging by the way he stayed on up the hill at Towcester, it should not prove a problem today. Saunders Road scored twice over fences last season, taking advantage of a lenient mark in the process initially. He remains a horse open to plenty of improvement but as said, well need to scrub up his jumping in order to stay involved in his races. Will The Till appeared to be set an impossible task last time when his rider sat too far out of his ground and the leaders just seemed to get away. He is better judged on both his win and second under his penalty beforehand. This is his first attempt at three miles but on his easy course, he should have little difficulty in seeing it out. Stamina fears are non-existent where Loch Vic is concerned. He gave odds-on punters a major fright when running Strong Coffee right to the line at Southwell last time. Although he might have been slightly flattered by that effort, he is another that could have further improvement to come. Thistlecraft is another that deserves a favourable mention. Flat, sharp tracks are where he seems to reserve his best form for while his mark has also taken a fair drop. Randolph O'Brien is selected to win it for the inform Nigel Twiston-Davies team.
Ferimon 7-2fav (11-8) Tracked leaders, led and mistake 3rd, headed 17th, outpaced from next, 5th of 11, 11l behind Spring Lover (10-11) at Ludlow 3m 1f hcp chs 0-125 (3) gd in Dec.
Saunders Road (IRE) 15-2 (11-2) Held up towards rear, ridden approaching 3 out, kept on, never dangerous, 4th of 14, 21l behind The Hollow Bottom (11-0) at Aintree 2m 4f hcp chs 0-130 (3) sft in Oct.
Thistlecraft (IRE) 9-4fav (11-6) Held up, improved to 3rd at 8th, blundered and unseated rider at the 10th in race won by Cool Roxy (11-9) at Fakenham 3m hcp chs 0-130 (3) gf in Oct, 6 ran.
Dun Drinan (IRE) 6-1 (10-7) Towards rear, progress into 6th 4 out, ridden in 7th after next, soon no impression, 5th of 15, 11l behind Alickadoo (10-3) at Gowran Park 3m hcp chs 0-123 gs in Oct.
Sir Monty (USA) 40-1 (10-11) Chased leaders, weakened approaching 2 out, 5th of 9, 17l behind Breedsbreeze (11-2) at Bangor 2m 4f nov chs (3) gd in Oct.
Dusty Dane (IRE) 6-1 (10-10) Held up, ridden after 8th, went modest 4th 3 out, soon weakened, tailed off, 5th of 8, well behind Master Medic (11-3) at Fontwell 2m 4f nov chs (4) gd in Oct.
Will The Till 10-1 (10-12) Held up in rear, effort 13th, went moderate 3rd when blundered 3 out, 3rd of 10, 30l behind Shining Gale (11-3) at Ludlow 2m 4f beg chs (4) gd in Oct.
Randolph O'Brien (IRE) 10-1 (11-5) Made all, in command approaching last, ridden and edged left flat, driven out, won at Towcester 2m 6f hcp chs 0-115 (4) gd in Oct beating Elsie's Pride (11-4) by 4 1/2l, 13 ran.
Super Judge (IRE) 14-1 (11-1) Towards rear, headway 8th, ridden 4 out, stayed on, hanging right, 3rd of 11, 4l behind De Soto (11-12) at Ludlow 3m hcp chs 0-115 (4) gf in Oct.
Go For One (IRE) 6-4fav (11-2) Prominent, mistake 4 out, chasing leaders when blundered and unseated rider at the 5th in race won by Artipreuil (11-9) at Uttoxeter 2m 4f hcp chs 0-110 (4) gs in Oct, 11 ran.
Loch Vic (IRE) 3-1 (11-4) With winner, hit 3rd and 5th, ridden and beaten approaching 3 out, stayed on same pace, 2nd of 4, 2 1/2l behind Strong Coffee (11-4) at Southwell 3m beg chs (3) gd in Oct.
