led 2nd to 8th, with leader, chased winner 3 out, led soon after 2 out, 2 lengths ahead last, headed near finish
held up, outpaced 4 out, rallied after 3 out, took poor 3rd next
keen hold early, held up in touch, led 3 out, jumped left 2 out and headed, 2 lengths down last, rallied flat to lead near finish
not fluent, prominent until jumped slowly 4th, mistake and lost touch 10th, tailed off
led to 2nd, with leader, led 8th to 3 out, soon weakened
held up in rear, headway 12th, ridden and weakened approaching 3 out
Monkerhostein can take advantage of a low chase mark to beat Colourful Life and Vodka Bleu. A classy hurdler, Monkerhostein was not always foot perfect over the bigger obstacles but Philip Hobbs looked to find the key to him last year and if he's fit and he jumps adequately, Monkerhostein will take the beating. Colourful Life produced an eye-catching win at Bangor last Saturday. He's now with Paul Nicholls and further improvement is far from out of the question. Vodka Bleu is another to have shown apparent improvement this term. He was something of a quirky character over hurdles but he looks to have sweetened up for a switch to chase fences and generally speaking, his attitude looks much more positive and there has been no fluke about his victories this year. Still only five, he faces a difficult task giving weight away to much more experienced horses. Master Tern has ability in spades. He does not tend to do his winning at this time of year so is opposed. Annie Byers handles any surface whereas Dun An Doras looks outclassed. Monkerhostein should be capable of landing this prize if his jumping holds up to examination.
