held up, headway when jumped left 3 out, one pace
chased leader, led 4 out, ridden and headed 2 out, stayed on same pace
chased leaders, blundered 10th, lost place, behind after
held up, headway 11th, led going well 2 out, readily
mid-division, not fluent 4th, reminders after 6th and after 7th, progress approaching 3 out, weakened 2 out
led to 4 out, weakened approaching 3 out
held up, jumped slowly 3rd, headway after 6th, every chance 3 out, stayed on same pace from 2 out
mid-division, ridden along after 9th, behind 4 out, pulled up before last
Nonrunner
Clearly In Motion is preferred to topweight Dalriath and Classic Rock. With not many of the nine declared runners in great form, a chance is taken that Clearly In Motion will prove good enough to follow up his back-to-form victory at Fontwell just a week ago. That was a grade lower than today's contest, but it was noticeable that the 10-year-old benefited from the stronger handling of Noel Fehily, having unseated each of his amateur pilots before his win. In fact Fehily is two from three on Charlie Mann's charge, and with the drying ground in his favour, it is hard to see any of today's rivals stopping him. He gets 7lb from Dalriath who has been pretty consistent in defeat and looks destined for the frame once again. Donovan gained his last victory in October 2005 and has been difficult to place ever since. Pulled up last time, he makes little appeal, while Classic Rock is in-and-out, although he would have needed his run over hurdles at Huntingdon last month, and has won over fences before. It is difficult to be optimistic about the rest, and Clearly In Motion has leading claims.
Dalriath 7-1 (10-11) Held up in rear, headway approaching 2 out, one pace, 3rd of 8, 13l behind Cusp (11-4) at Market Rasen 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-105 (4) sft.
Romany Dream 16-1 (11-0) Chased leaders, hit 8th, ridden after 11th, weakened after 3 out, 6th of 8, 47l behind Fast Forward (11-7) at Ascot 2m 3f hcp chs 0-115 (4) gs in Dec.
Classic Rock 5-1 (10-11) Soon led, ridden and headed before 2 out, soon weakened, 8th of 19, 23l behind Wotashambles (10-10) at Huntingdon 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-95 (5) sft in Feb.
Clearly In Motion (IRE) 9-2 (11-12) Held up, headway 8th, led on bit approaching 3 out, soon clear, comfortably, won at Fontwell 2m 2f hcp chs 0-90 (5) gd beating Just Muckin Around (11-1) by 10l, 10 ran.
Donovan (NZ) 14-1 (10-12) Behind, mistake 2nd, detached when pulled up at the 11th in race won by Ca Na Trona (11-4) at Ludlow 3m cnd hcp chs 0-105 (4) gd in Feb, 16 ran.
Tuesday's Child 33-1 (10-7) Held up, pulled hard, headway after 5th, chased leaders 3 out, weakened quickly next, 17th of 19, well behind Wotashambles (10-10) at Huntingdon 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-95 (5) sft in Feb.
Mistral De La Cour (FR) 40-1 (9-9) Held up in touch, mistake 2nd, lost place before 6th, no impression after, 7th of 14, 31l behind Marshall Hall (10-0) at Catterick 2m hcp chs 0-115 (4) hvy in Feb.
Day du Roy (FR) 9-1 (11-1) Always in rear, ridden and weakened 13th, tailed off when pulled up 4 out in race won by Be Telling (11-12) at Fakenham 3m sll hcp chs 0-100 (4) gs in Feb, 6 ran.
