mid-division, headway approaching 3 out, ridden and joined leaders approaching 2 out, not quicken
held up, ridden 8th, soon weakened
mid-division, hit 2nd, ridden 3 out, one pace from 2 out
held up in rear, good headway after 3 out, challenged on bit 2 out, led last, quicken clear flat, impressive
mid-division, pushed along after 8th, soon weakened, pulled up before 2 out
led to 5th, weakened 7th, pulled up before 2 out
held up, headway approaching 3 out, led after, ridden 2 out, headed last, no chance with winner
in touch, chased leaders 5th, hit 8th, one pace from 2 out
prominent, led 7th, mistake 8th, headed 3 out, soon weakened and pulled up before 2 out
chased leader, led 5th to 7th, led briefly 3 out, soon ridden and weakened
Disappointingly just 10 runners line up for this valuable mares' handicap hurdle but there is plenty of quality in the field with the weights headed by Nicky Henderson's impressive Aintree scorer Hora but an 18lb rise for that win looks harsh and she may struggle to give so much weight away to LAMANVER HOMERUN, who gets the vote over Castlecrossings. Jonjo O'Neill's mare showed progressive form over hurdles last term, notably on testing ground and she has to be respected with the yard's runners in good heart at present. Few yards are going better than that of Nigel Twiston-Davies but there is a suspicion that his runner here Amber Brook would want better ground and of more interest may be Charlie Mann's How's Business, who is better than he showed at Aintree on his reappearance last month. Cresswell Ruby comes into this in good heart having won her last two starts but she faces no easy task from out of the handicap, while Miss Aitch has gone well when fresh before but is probably best watched off her current mark. The vote then goes to Lamanver Homerun, who showed progressive form as a novice last term, she looks well treated for her first start in a handicap and is taken to give Paul Nicholls another winner. (Nick Millard)
Hora 7-2jt-fav (11-8) Always prominent, led approaching last, stayed on well, won at Aintree 3m nov hcp hdl (3) sft in Oct beating Patton (11-1) by 12l, 12 ran.
Castlecrossings (IRE) 15-2 (11-3) Held up, ridden 5th, soon weakened, beaten when pulled up 4 out in race won by La Vecchia Scuola (11-12) at Ayr 2m mrs hcp hdl (2) gs in Apr, 9 ran.
Miss Mitch (IRE) 9-2 (11-9) Tracked leaders, not fluent 3 out, ridden 2 out, beaten when hit last, 2nd of 12, 12l behind Kings Rock (10-7) at Uttoxeter 2m 6f hcp hdl 0-130 (3) sft in Apr.
Amber Brook (IRE) 8-1 (10-9) Tracked leaders, led 4 out, ridden and headed 2 out, soon one pace, 5th of 9, 11l behind Irish Legend (10-3) at Chepstow 2m 4f lst hcp hdl (1) gd in Oct.
Mossville (FR) 16-1 (10-2) Led 2nd until 5th, led 6th, ridden and headed 4 out, soon weakened, last of 12, well behind Hills Of Aran (11-7) at Chepstow 3m hcp hdl (2) gd in Oct.
Ouh Jay 33-1 (11-4) Took keen hold, pressed leader, led approaching 2nd, not fluent 4th, headed before 7th, soon weakened, 14th of 17, 46l behind The Polomoche (11-12) at Stratford 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-130 (3) gf in Oct.
Lamanver Homerun 4-11fav (10-12) Chased leader, led after 4th, jumped left, went clear, hung left from approaching 2 out, jumped badly left last, kept on flat, won at Wincanton 2m 6f mrs nov hdl (4) gs in Mar beating Lady Bling Bling (10-7) by 4l, 5 ran.
It's A Discovery (IRE) 14-1 (10-6) In touch, hit 7th, weakened 2 out, 15th of 16, 34l behind Mirage Dore (10-10) at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp hdl 0-140 (2) gd in Oct.
How's Business 13-2 (11-2) Mid-division, weakened from 4 out and pulled up 3 out in race won by Lysander (10-0) at Aintree 3m hcp hdl 0-130 (3) sft in Oct, 18 ran.
Cresswell Ruby (IRE) 11-1 (10-11) Made all, ridden flat, stayed on gamely, won at Huntingdon 3m 2f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gd in Oct beating Nostringsattached (11-10) by 7l, 10 ran.
