with leaders, reminders 7th, effort 4 out, ridden and kept on same pace from next
held up, ridden and some headway 5 out, 5 lengths down and outpaced when blundered and unseated rider next
held up, mistake 4th, headway to lead 4 out, headed next, soon ridden and one pace
prominent when fell 5 out
in touch, hit and hampered 5 out, weakened next
held up in rear, struggling 6th, never dangerous
held up, struggling 6th, tailed off 5 out
in touch, headway 4 out, led next, stayed on well
chased leaders, outpaced 4 out, stayed on to go 2nd last, ridden out, not reached winner
made most to 5th, tracked leaders, led again 5 out, headed next, soon weakened
tracked leaders, led 5th, headed after 5 out, weakened from next
A tough race for punters can go the way of Ferdy Murphy's Barton Sun, with Seymar Lad, Birdwatch and Aztec Prince heading a lengthy shortlist. The last-named won well 19 days ago at Kelso, however whilst he may have more to come, a 14lb rise in the weights could be prohibitive. Seymar Lad represents a trainer with a tremendous 50% record with his chasers at the track, however he will have to step up on his two previous runs if he is to trouble the judge today. He must be watched in the market. Assumetheposition's trainer Richard Guest is another with a great record, however the horses last two runs have been woeful so he cannot be truly fancied. Birdwatch has been running consistently, however he will need to iron out his jumping mistakes if he is to win today, whilst the same can be said for the strong-travelling Jimmys Duky. Barton Sun comes here after a fine run when being collared on the line, and dropping back in trip today, he may be able to put these to the sword from the front. The stable is in good form at present and he gets the vote today.
Birdwatch 6-1 (11-2) Tracked leaders, lost place 7th, stayed on to go 2nd towards finish, 2nd of 6, 17l behind Terlan (11-2) at Sedgefield 2m nov chs (4) hvy.
Seymar Lad (IRE) 7-2 (11-3) Mid-division, headway 4 out, weakening when blundered 2 out, 5th of 8, 10l behind Gastornis (11-11) at Musselburgh 2m 4f nov hcp chs 0-110 (4) gs.
Aztec Prince (IRE) 4-1 (10-0) Tracked leaders, led 2 out, ridden approaching last, drew clear flat, won at Kelso 2m 1f hcp chs 0-110 (4) hvy beating Fearless Foursome (11-12) by 14l, 9 ran.
Sparkling Taff 22-1 (11-7) Held up, headway 6th, weakened after 3 out, behind when pulled up at the last in race won by All For Luck (11-7) at Wetherby 2m 7f nh mdn hdl (5) hvy, 12 ran.
Kalic d'Alm (FR) 10-1 (10-10) Led, headed 3rd, hit 6th, weakened and lost touch from 3 out, 7th of 9, well behind Aztec Prince (10-0) at Kelso 2m 1f hcp chs 0-110 (4) hvy.
Toulouse Express (IRE) 4-1 (11-4) Chased leaders, weakening when hampered 3 out, 3rd of 10, 17l behind High Calibre (11-13) at Catterick 2m nov hcp chs 0-105 (4) sft.
Assumetheposition (FR) 8-1 (11-2) Chased leaders, faded 7th, beaten when pulled up at the 8th in race won by Emerald Destiny (10-3) at Catterick 2m 3f hcp chs 0-100 (4) gs in Dec, 13 ran.
Barton Sun (IRE) 13-2 (11-0) Close up, led approaching 9th, ridden approaching 4 out, no extra when headed close home, 2nd of 12, 1 1/2l behind Young Smokey (11-10) at Newcastle 2m 4f hcp chs (5) sft.
Jimmys Duky (IRE) 2-1 (10-2) Tracked leaders, headway 3 out, challenged next, every chance when hit last, no extra flat, 3rd of 10, 4l behind Cloudmor (11-8) at Sedgefield 2m 4f hcp chs 0-95 (5) hvy.
Hiddenfortune (IRE) 14-1 (10-0) Always behind, weakened from 12th, beaten when pulled up 4 out in race won by Getinbybutonlyjust (11-9) at Ayr 3m 1f nov hcp chs 0-110 (4) hvy, 8 ran.
Kinkeel (IRE) 5-1 (10-0) Led, ridden and headed 2 out, soon no chance with winner, 2nd of 6, 7l behind High Calibre (11-8) at Folkestone 2m nov hcp chs 0-100 (4) gs.
