SHORE THING won impressively at Ludlow and can prove too strong for these adversaries; of whom, Sheer Magnetism and Novikov may give him most to do. The selection has the highest official rating in the field of those with marks and he should be capable of giving weight to these rivals. The ground will be more testing than the conditions he encountered at Ludlow so there are concerns on that score but he has everything else in his favour. Novikov isn't the most straightforward individual but he has a fair bit of ability and has run relatively well under similar conditions. He could go well but may not be the most reliable when the going gets tough. Sheer Magnetism represents a yard enjoying a good run of form and he merits respect as he takes a steep drop in class. However, he didn't really show enough on his one run over hurdles to warrant recommending on ground softer than any he's encountered before. Wondersobright can never be ruled out at this venue whilst Just Beware ran well last time and should go well down in grade but preference is for Shore Thing.
Shore Thing (IRE) 9-4 (11-12) Made all, not fluent 2 out, clear last, ridden out, won at Ludlow 2m Claiming Hurdle (4-7) (4) sft in Nov beating Bureaucrat (11-8) by 14l, 6 ran.
Novikov 12-1 (11-4) Mid-division, raced keenly, headway after 5th, beaten 2 out, 4th of 13, 20l behind Viable (11-4) at Huntingdon 2m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gd in Nov.
Sheer Magnetism (IRE) 66-1 (10-9) Mid-division, headway 5th, weakened 3 out, soon tailed off, 16th of 18, well behind Show Winner (10-7) at Kempton 2m nh nov hdl (4) gs in Nov '08.
Yes Minister (IRE) 50-1 (10-12) Raced wide, chased leaders until ridden and weakened soon after 3 out, tailed off, 8th of 9, well behind Quartano (10-12) at Plumpton 2m 5f nov hdl (4) hvy in Nov.
Just Beware 12-1 (9-9) Close-up in 5th, steady headway from 3 out, 2nd after 2 out, no chance with winner when ridden and hung left flat, kept on for clear 2nd, 2nd of 6, 6l behind Spear Thistle (11-11) at Lingfield 2m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) hvy in Nov.
Wondersobright (IRE) 16-1 (9-10) Chased leader and clear of rest, hit 5th, pushed along before 7th, weakened before next, last 4 out, tailed off when mistake next, 9th of 10, 50l behind Nomecheki (11-6) at Plumpton 2m 1f hcp chs 0-120 (3) hvy in Nov.
