in touch in mid-division, closed before 3 out, shaken up after 2 out, stayed on flat, went 2nd towards finish, no impression on winner
prominent, ridden and edged left after 2 out, no impression on winner last, lost 2nd towards finish
held up, took keen hold, in touch in rear when fell 3 out
made all, clear when hit last, ridden and stayed on well flat
held up, in touch 3 out, no impression next, soon edged left
prominent, ridden before 3 out, lost place when not fluent next
tracked leaders, ridden after 3 out, disputing 2nd last, no impression on winner, stayed on
held up, in touch in rear when hampered and unseated rider 3 out
Nonrunner
There has only been one winner of this in the last seven years that has started at bigger odds than 7/2 so it will probably pay to concentrate on those likely to be at the head of the market. Nicky Henderson has trained two of those last seven winners and though MA FILLEULE hasn’t raced over hurdles for almost two years and would probably prefer a bit further, she has the class to land this getting 8lb from Kempton runner-up Stephanie Frances, who beat Bantam and Midnight Jazz in this grade at Cheltenham in April. Blue Buttons is useful but would also have preferred a bit further while the four-year-old Intense Tango faces a stiff task at the weights. Allez Encore looks the pick of the remainder.
Intense Tango 10-3fav (9-11) Held up in touch, ridden over 2f out, kept on inside final furlong, 5th of 15, 2l behind Hardstone (10-0) at Ayr 1m 5f hcp (3) gd in Sep.
Allez Encore (IRE) 28-1 (11-10) Mid-division, not fluent 1st, headway on outside 4th, weakened before 3 out, tailed off, 12th of 17, dist behind Kalane (10-13) at Newbury 2m 5f hcp lst (1) gd in Mar.
Bantam (IRE) 15-2 (11-12) Mid-division, headway from 5th, chased winner after 2 out, soon ridden, no impression before last, stayed on same pace, 2nd of 8, 4 1/2l behind Northern Meeting (10-1) at Stratford 2m hcp (3) gd in Oct.
Blue Buttons (IRE) 8-1 (10-10) Led, ridden after 2 out, headed narrowly last, kept on, held when lost 2nd towards finish, 3rd of 13, 5l behind The Govaness (10-9) at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp lst (1) gd in Apr.
Last Supper 2-1fav (8-13) Mid-division, headway 4f out, ridden over 2f out, kept on towards finish, 3rd of 9, 5 1/4l behind King Of Paradise (8-12) at Hamilton 1m 3f hcp (5) gd in May.
Ma Filleule (FR) 9-2 (11-0) Tracked leaders on inside, jumped right 2nd, ridden after 3 out, one pace from next, weakened before last, 6th of 7, 33 1/4l behind Silviniaco Conti (11-7) at Aintree 3m 1f (1) gs in Apr.
Midnight Jazz 9-2 (10-12) With leader, led between last 2, headed last, soon ridden and one pace, no impression with front pair final 110 yards, 3rd of 8, 8 3/4l behind Stephanie Frances (10-12) at Cheltenham 2m 1f lst (1) gd in Apr.
Roja Dove (IRE) 3-1fav (10-11) Held up in last pair in touch, tracked leaders 3 out, one pace next, no impression in 4th before last, 4th of 7, 9 1/4l behind A Little Bit Dusty (11-4) at Southwell 2m (5) gd in Aug.
Stephanie Frances (IRE) 5-1fav (11-1) In touch, headway before 2 out, soon chasing winner, kept on well, 2nd of 5, 2l behind The New One (11-8) at Kempton 2m lst (1) gd in Oct.
