always prominent, went 2nd 4 out, led 3 out, in command well before last, stayed on gamely
prominent, weakened after 3 out, blundered and fell next
always in rear, tailed off
behind, ridden and struggling 11th, tailed off and pulled up after next
mid-division, mistake 2nd, lost place before 14th, tailed off
held up in rear, headway approaching 3 out, kept on but no impression from next
held up towards rear, effort and in touch 15th, weakened before 3 out, tailed off
mid-division, headway under pressure to chase leaders 4 out, went 2nd last, no chance with winner
prominent, weakened before 3 out
always behind
chased leaders, never going well from 11th, behind from 13th, tailed off
mid-division, lost place 12th, behind when blundered 14th, pulled up before next
mid-division, weakened 14th, soon tailed off
made most to 6th, led again 9th, headed 3 out, jumped left next and no impression, lost 2nd and jumped left last
with leader, led 6th to 9th, prominent until weakened 13th, tailed off when pulled up before 3 out
Brendan Powell can gain his biggest success as a trainer with Colonel Frank who gets the vote over Farmer Jack, Palarshan, Tribal Venture and Irish raider Be My Better Half. Colonel Frank has improved out of all recognition since being sent over fences, winning four of his five starts this year, his only defeat coming against another improver Oneway, to whom he was conceding lumps of weight. With that in mind, a mark of 144 does not look overly harsh, and with the trip and ground very much in his favour, the eight-year-old, who is a sound jumper, will be a popular choice. It can be pointed out that Farmer Jack, even with his 3lb penalty, is 11lb well in compared to his Aon Chase success at Newbury, but even so it is surely going to be a tall order to give 10lb away to the selection. Stablemate Gunther McBride is of course a real Racing post specialist, having collected in 2001 and been runner-up in the last two runnings, so he must not be ruled out for those contemplating an each-way bet. Palarshan is closely matched with farmer Jack on their latest Cheltenham running, but the former Grand Annual winner has yet to prove that he can come up with the goods over this sort of trip. Tribal Venture impressed with his jumping here last time but it remains to be seen how he will cope with this big field today. Nicky Henderson has a knack of producing the goods on the day so Scots Grey is worth a mention as is Banker Count who is well-handicapped on his form of old. The Irish raider Be My Better Half is entered for the Grand National so he should stay this trip no problem, but may not be allowed to dominate proceedings as he would like. For the winner we return to Colonel Frank who can join the illustrious list of winners of this prestigious affair.
Farmer Jack 12-1 Always prominent, led 8th until 13th, ridden after 3 out, led again last, stayed on well, won at Newbury 3m chs Grd 2 (A) gs beating Strong Flow by 1 1/2l, 8 ran.
Colonel Frank 9-4fav Jumped well, joined 3 out, in command last, stayed on well flat, won at Sandown 3m chs (B) gs in Dec beating Calling Brave by 2l, 5 ran.
Redemption 15-2 Not fluent, blundered 6th, always behind, 13th of 16, well behind Buckby Lane at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp chs Grd 3 (A) gs in Jan.
Astonville (FR) 66-1 Chased leaders, went 2nd approaching 6th, ridden after 3 out, soon weakened, 7th of 8, 35l behind Blue Canyon at Haydock 2m 4f hcp hdl Grd 2 (A) hvy in Jan.
Horus (IRE) 20-1 Held up, effort 16th, blundered and weakened 4 out, 6th of 12, 43l behind Innox at Sandown 3m hcp chs 0-145 (B) gd.
Palarshan (FR) 25-1 In touch, stayed on after 3 out, kept on under pressure to take 3rd run-in, 3rd of 16, 7l behind Buckby Lane at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp chs Grd 3 (A) gs in Jan.
Tikram 10-1 Held up, steady headway when not fluent 11th, stayed on from 3 out, went 2nd last, no impression on winner, 2nd of 12, 7l behind Colourful Life at Doncaster 3m hcp chs 0-145 (A) gd in Jan.
Tribal Venture (FR) 10-3 Prominent, led narrowly 13th, made rest, in command when left clear last, won at Kempton 3m nov chs (C) gd in Jan beating Too Forward by 4l, 6 ran.
Iznogoud (FR) 16-1 In touch, lost place 11th, soon well behind, 14th of 16, well behind Buckby Lane at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp chs Grd 3 (A) gs in Jan.
See You Sometime 12-1 Held up, outpaced 4 out, stayed on approaching last, not pace to challenge, last of 5, 6l behind El Vaquero at Sandown 2m 4f nov chs Grd 1 (A) gs.
Knock Down (IRE) 12-1 Tracked leaders, ridden 3 out, weakened approaching 2 out, 7th of 10, 25l behind Bongo Fury at Doncaster 2m mrs hcp hdl (B) gd in Jan.
Gunther McBride (IRE) 15-8fav Made all, hit 1st, not fluent after, ridden and left clear 2 out, easily, won at Doncaster 3m 2f hcp chs 0-140 (B) gd in Dec beating Lord Of The River by 20l, 6 ran.
Mondial Jack (FR) 33-1 Never going well in rear, mistake and tailed off 10th and pulled up 4 out in race won by Buckby Lane at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp chs Grd 3 (A) gs in Jan, 16 ran.
Zaffamore (IRE) 16-1 Held up towards rear, headway approaching 4 out, soon ridden, kept on, 2nd of 7, 8l behind Bathwick Annie at Wincanton 3m 1f hcp chs 0-135 (C) sft in Jan.
Banker Count 10-1 Made most, pushed along approaching 3 out, in command between last 2, eased near finish, won at Kempton 2m 4f hcp chs 0-130 (C) gs beating Zeta's River by 8l, 8 ran.
Scots Grey 12-1 Prominent until 12th, 10th of 15, well behind Le Duc at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp chs (B) gd in Jan.
Inca Trail (IRE) 2-1fav Held up, mistake 11th, effort 4 out, weakened after next, 6th of 7, 14l behind Maxie McDonald at Ludlow 3m 3f hcp chs 0-125 (D) gs in Dec.
Run For Paddy 8-1 Held up, not fluent 7th (water), steady headway approaching 11th, stayed on one pace after 3 out, went 3rd near finish, 3rd of 12, 8l behind Colourful Life at Doncaster 3m hcp chs 0-145 (A) gd in Jan.
