held up in rear, mistake 10th, steady headway approaching 3 out, ridden to lead last, narrowly headed flat, rallied gamely to regain lead near finish
held up, headway to track leaders 10th, mistake 13th, soon lost place, tailed off when pulled up before 3 out
held up, headway and mistake 3 out, chased leaders next, weakened last
held up, headway to track leaders and going well when stumbled 2 out, stayed on approaching last, took 3rd flat
held up, ridden 14th, soon struggling
chased leaders, led 15th, ridden and narrowly headed last, rallied to regain lead flat, headed near finish
tracked leader, mistake 7th, effort 16th, every chance 3 out, weakened before next
tracked leaders, jumped right 2nd, led 4th to 12th, weakened before 4 out
made most to 4th, tracked leader, led again 12th to 15th, weakened next
Winning pointer and former hunter chaser Mr Splodge took advantage of a lenient mark when scoring at Plumpton last month but the 11-year-old has gone up 13lbs for that success and he may now be in the grip of the handicapper so preference is for Luneray, who gets the vote ahead of Koumba. The last mentioned was the latest in along line of horses to beat Mylo when landing a novices' event at Worcester last month and he looks to be a shade high in the weights judged by that and his subsequent defeat at Chepstow. The Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Scotch Corner was pulled up when last seen in May but has slipped to a fair mark and could be of interest if fit enough for his return. Enda Bolger's raiders always warrant respect and Darby Wall is no exception although he does not look to be the best-handicapped horse in the field. Hazeljack will appreciate every drop of rain that falls but may be in need of the run having been off since March, while Penthouse Minstrel should be fit given the form of runners from the yard of Ron Hodges but needs to improve on recent form. The vote though goes to Luneray, who should step up on the form of his two previous starts this term and is taken to provide trainer Paul Nicholls with another winner.
Darby Wall (IRE) 4-1 (11-10) Prominent, 3rd from 4th, 2nd after 4 out, 3rd and ridden after next, kept on same pace, 3rd of 11, 8l behind Curragh Gem (9-7) at Listowel 2m hcp chs 0-123 gd in Sept.
Mr Splodge 7-2 (10-12) Held up, led 8th, hit 9th, clear 13th, well clear 3 out, eased near finish, won at Plumpton 3m 2f hcp chs 0-110 (E) gf in Sept beating Tommy Carson (10-11) by 6l, 7 ran.
Totheroadyouvgone 25-1 (10-2) Always towards rear, 13th of 18, 38l behind Euro Leader (12-0) at Listowel 3m hcp chs Grd 1 gd in Sept.
Luneray (FR) 12-1 (10-13) Mid-division, headway approaching 10th, ridden and every chance from 2 out until no extra flat, 3rd of 10, 5l behind Ebony Light (10-9) at Bangor 3m hcp chs 0-125 (D) gs.
Koumba (FR) 16-1 (10-12) Held up towards rear, headway 13th, ridden 4 out, left 2nd 2 out, no impression, 2nd of 10, 7l behind State of Play (10-10) at Chepstow 3m nov chs (D) gs.
Penthouse Minstrel 18-1 (10-6) Always behind, tailed off from 9th, 9th of 13, well behind Bronzesmith (11-12) at Worcester 2m 4f hcp chs 0-120 (D) gd in Jun.
Scotch Corner (IRE) 4-1 (11-0) In touch, ridden and headway 14th, weakened quickly 16th and pulled up 4 out in race won by Gumley Gale (11-8) at N Abbot 3m 2f hcp chs 0-120 (D) gs in May, 8 ran.
Hazeljack 7-1 (10-7) Chased leader until weakened approaching 4 out, 4th of 10, 15l behind Red Devil Robert (11-12) at Stratford 3m hcp chs 0-120 (D) sft in Mar.
