chased leader, ridden 4 out, lost place approaching 3 out, kept on from 2 out, left 3rd last
mid-division, headway approaching 8th, ridden after 11th, chased leader 4 out, led approaching 3 out, left clear last, readily
prominent, ridden after 4 out, kept on same pace from 3 out, left 2nd and slightly hampered last
held up, blundered 3rd, headway 6th, ridden 4 out, weakened approaching 3 out
held up last, reminder 9th, ridden after 10th, headway from 12th, stayed on well from 3 out
led, jumped left 4 out, soon ridden, headed approaching 3 out, beaten in 2nd when mistake and unseated rider last
held up mid-division, mistake 6th, ridden and lost touch 13th, pulled up after 4 out
chased leader, ridden after 10th, weakened quickly 11th, pulled up after 12th
held up towards rear, ridden and lost touch approaching 11th, soon no chance
With his record at the track and his current form Paul Nicholls looks the man to side with here and his Beau Michel can score on debut, while Dream Falcon, Mole's Chamber and Opera De Coeur are all respected. Beau Michel makes his chasing debut here but will have been well prepared and always gave the impression when tackling timber that the larger obstacles would bring out the best in him. He handles most ground and is related to a couple of decent stayers, so he has plenty in his favour. Strictly on hurdles form Opera De Coeur should have his measure at thtese weights, but he has struggled on his last two starts and while he should strip fitter for his seasonal reappearance we'd like to see him show some better form before getting financially involved. Mole's Chamber should improve for this step up in trip and a previous run this campaign and he could come into his own over fences, while Dream Falcon handles the track, trip and ground, but he is not open to as much improvement as the aforementioned trio and is opposed in favour of Beau Michel.
Ackhurst (IRE) 9-2 (11-1) Held up in rear, mistake 2nd and 5th, driven along after 10th, beaten when blundered and unseated rider at the last in race won by Golden Oak (10-8) at Towcester 2m 3f chs 0-95 (5) sft in Nov, 10 ran.
Beau Michel (FR) 4-1 (10-10) Held up, reminders 4th, headway approaching 3 out, tracked leader 2 out, led before last, headed last, no chance with easy winner flat, 2nd of 10, 7l behind Abragante (11-2) at Cheltenham 3m hcp hdl 0-145 (2) gd in Apr.
Dream Falcon 20-1 (10-5) Mid-division, headway 10th, ridden 12th, one pace from 3 out, 4th of 9, 28l behind Minella Tipperary (10-12) at Exeter 2m 7f nov chs (3) gs in Nov.
Elbow Lane (IRE) 25-1 (11-12) Took keen hold, held up in rear, not fluent 6th, blundered and unseated rider at the 9th in race won by Kiltimoney (10-0) at Plumpton 3m 2f hcp chs 0-100 (4) sft, 10 ran.
Jamadiel (IRE) 28-1 (10-7) Behind when unseated rider at the 7th in race won by Over The Creek (11-0) at Hereford 3m 1f beg chs (4) gs, 12 ran.
Mokujin (FR) 50-1 (10-13) Held up, hit 6th, lost touch 11th and pulled up 4 out in race won by Albertas Run (11-4) at Cheltenham 3m nov chs (2) gd in Nov, 9 ran.
Mole's Chamber (IRE) 16-1 (11-2) Mid-division until 5th, 17th of 20, 49l behind Kia Kaha (10-13) at Cheltenham 2m nov hcp hdl 0-120 (3) gd in Nov.
Opera de Coeur (FR) 13-2 (10-13) Prominent, ridden and every chance 3 out, weakened next, 4th of 9, well behind Albertas Run (11-4) at Cheltenham 3m nov chs (2) gd in Nov.
Winds And Dragons (IRE) 10-1 (11-2) Always in rear, 6th of 10, well behind Thunder Rock (11-2) at Ludlow 2m 4f beg chs (4) gd in Nov.
