held up in rear, jumped slowly 5th, some headway 3 out, weakened before next
always prominent, challenging when jumped left and not fluent 2 out, soon not clear run, not much room on landing last, squeezed though against rail to lead, ran on well
held up in rear, headway 5th, outpaced after 3 out, stayed on flat, went 3rd post, no chance with front pair
in rear, ridden after 2nd, stayed on flat, never any chance
tracked leaders on outside, ridden after 4th, not fluent and lost place next, weakened before 3 out, tailed off
prominent, not fluent 5th, soon lost place, well behind before 2 out, pulled up just before last
tracked leaders, not fluent 5th, ridden after 3 out, mistake and weakened next
mid-division, not fluent 5th, headway 3 out, 3rd and one pace next, no impression, lost 3rd post
tracked leaders, mistake 3 out, soon lost place, weakened before next
led, pecked 2 out, soon ridden and edged right, edged right from after last and headed, stayed on same pace
CELESTIAL MAGIC showed improvement when third at Ludlow last month and his experience should stand him in good stead against the hurdling newcomers. The latter group are led by Magic Dancer, a decent handicapper on the Flat and rated much higher than the likes of Dan Skelton's new inmate Ashoka, For Goodness Sake and Sneaking Budge. Mister Dick never figured on his hurdling bow and can only improve.
Alhamareer (IRE) 12-1 (9-5) Prominent, driven to challenge over 2f out, weakened over 1f out, last of 12, 13 1/4l behind Balios (9-5) at Kempton 1m mdn stks (4) pol in Nov.
Ashoka (IRE) 2-1fav (9-5) A little keen, prominent, 4th 3f out, pushed along to challenge 2f out, slightly impeded and edged left inside final furlong, kept on without matching 1st 2, 3rd of 10, 1 3/4l behind Plot Twist (9-5) at Curragh 1m 2f mdn sft in Aug.
Celestial Magic 14-1 (10-12) Pulled hard in rear, headway before 3 out, chased leaders approaching last, never a threat, 3rd of 7, 10 3/4l behind Who Dares Wins (10-12) at Ludlow 2m (4) gs in Nov.
Early Retirement (IRE) Daylami gelding out of Deep Lilly.
Fidelity 100-1 (10-12) In rear, went remote 3rd when ridden after 4th, never any chance with front pair, tailed off, 3rd of 4, dist behind Sceau Royal (11-4) at Warwick 2m (4) gs in Nov.
Light Breaks (IRE) 25-1 (10-12) Led, headed when jumped left 4 out, remained prominent until weakened 3 out, 6th of 7, 36 1/4l behind Who Dares Wins (10-12) at Ludlow 2m (4) gs in Nov.
Magic Dancer 12-1 (9-2) Led, headed over 7f out tracked winner until ridden over 3f out, weakened 2f out, last of 7, 32 1/2l behind Noble Gift (9-9) at Leicester 1m 4f hcp (2) sft in Oct.
Mister Dick (FR) 9-1 (11-0) Held up in rear, mistake 1st, not fluent 7th, some headway when not fluent 3 out, soon weakened, 9th of 10, dist behind Duke Of Sonning (11-0) at Uttoxeter 2m mdn (5) gd in Oct.
Sneaking Budge 10-1 (9-2) Tracked leaders, pushed along over 2f out, ridden and every chance over 1f out, badly hampered approaching final furlong, not recover, last of 7, 17 1/2l behind Sweet Selection (9-0) at Chelmsford City 2m hcp (5) pol in Nov.
For Goodness Sake (IRE) 25-1 (8-9) Chased leaders, 5th 4f out, soon ridden and weakened, 11th of 15, 14 1/4l behind Santo Prince (8-10) at Gowran Park 1m 6f hcp gd in Oct.
