well in rear, mistake 8th, headway after 4 out, stayed on to go 3rd flat, never near front pair
set good gallop, not fluent 2nd, headed approaching 3 out, weakening when jumped right last
not fluent, soon well behind, jumped left 7th, pulled up before next
chased leaders, raced keenly, lost place 8th, soon behind, tailed off when pulled up before last
pressed leader until after 4 out, mistake 3 out, soon weakened
towards rear, hit 2nd, blundered next, lost touch after 8th, tailed off when pulled up before last
mid-division, struggling 8th, soon weakened
mid-division, headway 7th, jumped right next, pushed along after 4 out, went second after 2 out, challenging when bumped last, stayed on under strong pressure to lead towards finish
chased leaders, led approaching 4 out, ridden 5 lengths clear after 2 out, hung right briefly, hanging left before last where pressed and bumped, headed towards finish
Dishdasha must be considered but the feeling is that he is a better hurdler than chaser and so we are inclined to side with LAOCH DUBH ahead of Passato. The last-named could be interesting as the German-bred individual has only had one start over fences, when pitched into Grade Two company at Kempton in December. Although soundly beaten he wasn't disgraced and we may see a decent effort today. However Laoch Dubh has already shown that he can cut the mustard and Charlie Mann's runner may have been refreshed by a four-month break. He acts on most ground but will not mind if the sun shines over the weekend as it is forecast to do and he looks to be on a feasible mark once again. Gentle John tends to do too much in his races and fails to last home, whilst Dominican Monk is a course winner who should appreciate the drop in trip this afternoon; he has taken well to fences. Dev is consistent, a comment that also applies to Norborne Bandit who is just out of the weights today. Pepperoni Pete returns to fences after being handicapped out of things over hurdles, whilst High Oscar ran much better three weeks ago than he had the time before and warrants respect. A tricky race for punters but the vote is given to Laoch Dubh.
Dishdasha (IRE) 4-1 (11-8) Held up towards rear, headway when blundered 4 out, weakened approaching last, 6th of 12, 10l behind Lord Jay Jay (11-11) at Stratford 2m 1f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd.
Laoch Dubh (IRE) 18-1 (11-10) Led after 1st, headed 5th, chased leaders, hit 6th, weakened from 5 out, pulled up before 3 out, in a race won by Almaydan (11-12) at Doncaster 2m hcp chs 0-130 (3) sft in Jan, 15 ran.
Dominican Monk (IRE) 3-1fav (11-4) Mid-division, raced keenly, headway 11th, went close 2nd 3 out until not much room before 2 out, weakened last, 5th of 11, 11l behind Gaelic Flight (10-12) at Southwell 2m 4f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd.
Gentle John (FR) 16-1 (11-5) Mid-division, raced keenly, headway after 7th, weakened approaching last, 7th of 12, 14l behind Lord Jay Jay (11-11) at Stratford 2m 1f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd.
Dev (IRE) 7-2fav (11-1) Led to 2 out, stayed on one pace, 3rd of 9, 5l behind Beggars Cap (11-10) at Aintree 2m hcp chs 0-135 (3) gd.
Pepporoni Pete (IRE) 14-1 (10-11) Mid-division, pulled hard, headway to chase leaders when not fluent 3 out, soon ridden, beaten before 2 out, 6th of 13, 10l behind Oceana Gold (11-9) at Stratford 2m hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gd.
High Oscar 11-1 (11-10) Led until narrowly headed 7th, stayed challenging until no impression before 2 out, 3rd of 7, 24l behind Dead Or Alive (11-0) at Plumpton 2m 4f hcp ch 0-110 (4) gf.
Passato (GER) 5-6fav (10-11) Chased clear leader, led approaching 3 out, ridden and headed approaching last, no extra, 2nd of 7, 5l behind Tavalu (10-1) at Exeter 2m 3f nov hcp hdl 0-100 (4) gf.
Norborne Bandit (IRE) 3-1 (10-12) Led, headed 3rd, outpaced 6th, took moderate 2nd near line, 2nd of 5, 25l behind Marsam (10-12) at Wetherby 2m nov stks (4) gs.
