tracked leaders, led 3rd, headed 6th, lost touch from 13th
in touch, lost place 4th, weakened 13th
in rear when fell 3rd
in touch, ridden to chase leaders 3 out, rallied to chase leading pair 2 out, held when fell last
in touch, led 9th, ridden 4 out, kept on
held up towards rear, headway 14th, ridden to chase leaders 3 out, weakened approaching 2 out
in rear, mistake 10th, pulled up before 11th
mid-division, mistake and weakened 14th, pulled up before 3 out
prominent, led 6th, headed 9th, ridden to chase leaders 4 out, weakened after 3 out
led, headed 3rd, stayed prominent, chased leader 3 out, held when fell last
towards rear, ridden 12th, some progress soon after, hampered and left 2nd last
Celtic Boy can come out on top in a wide-open contest, with Goblet Of Fire, Bronzesmith, Whispered Secret and East Tycoon others to consider. This looks one of the most wide-open contests on the card, and only a tentative vote goes the way of Celtic Boy who ran a sound race in defeat at Perth when third to King Barry. Peter Bowen's charge had earlier finally got his act together over fences when scoring at Kelso and can continue on the upgrade to take a hand here. Goblet Of Fire has been consistent but lack of a recent outing might just count against him, while Bronzesmith was driven out to score at Bangor and will have no problem with the step up in trip so is another to consider. Whispered Secret ran out of steam in the soft ground here last time and today's underfoot conditions should help his bid to defy topweight. There should be little between him and East Tycoon in fact on that latest running, and the pair should be involved somewhere along the line. However, the one that we prefer to side with is Celtic Boy.
Whispered Secret (GER) 11-1 (11-12) Led 3rd, headed after 8th, weakened 10th, 4th of 8, 28l behind Fool On The Hill (11-3) at Stratford 2m 5f hcp chs 0-140 (2) sft in May.
Goblet of Fire (USA) 3-1 (11-10) Prominent, ridden to chase leaders 4 out, challenged 3 out, left 2nd last, ran on, not reach winner, 2nd of 7, 1 1/2l behind Matthew Muroto (11-6) at N Abbot 2m 5f nov chs (3) gf in Apr.
Bronzesmith 7-1 (11-2) Held up, headway 11th, led approaching 2 out, driven out, won at Bangor 2m 4f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd in May beating Christopher (10-8) by 2l, 11 ran.
Celtic Boy (IRE) 7-2fav (11-12) Mid-division, smooth headway to chase leaders 4 out, hit next, soon ridden and one pace, 3rd of 15, 9l behind King Barry (11-3) at Perth 3m hcp chs 0-140 (2) gf.
Tango Royal (FR) 16-1 (11-10) Always behind, 8th of 11, 21l behind Bronzesmith (11-2) at Bangor 2m 4f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd in May.
East Tycoon (IRE) 3-1fav (10-13) Towards rear, some progress 10th, plugging on when mistake 3 out, left 2nd 2 out, 3rd of 8, 18l behind Fool On The Hill (11-3) at Stratford 2m 5f hcp chs 0-140 (2) sft in May.
On The Outside (IRE) 8-1 (11-0) Led, headed 9th, weakened 15th and pulled up 4 out in race won by Zaffamore (10-6) at Ludlow 3m 1f hcp chs 0-130 (3) gd in May, 8 ran.
Misty Future 14-1 (10-13) Chased leaders, reminders 8th, outpaced when mistake next, soon struggling, tailed off from 2 out, 11th of 14, well behind Totally Scottish (11-3) at Southwell 3m 2f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gd.
