held up, ridden after 3 out, weakened next
tracked leaders and keen, pulled up before 4th, dismounted
held up mid-division, headway to chase leaders after 3 out, soon ridden, went 2nd after last, stayed on towards finish
held up in rear, ridden after 2 out, stayed on run-in
tracked leader, led 3rd, ridden after last, kept on well
held up, headway after 3 out, ridden and hung right last, no extra run-in
led to 3rd, remained close up, ridden 2 out, blundered last, soon weakened
Shaman can give in-form Gary Moore another winner, with Orpen Wide, Tech Eagle and Hilltime all considered as potential dangers. There is plenty of winning form to go on here, including that of Shaman who has been successful on two of his last three outings, but can still line up off bottom weight here. Gary Moore's charge has twice been coaxed to score, at Plumpton and Fontwell, and there is no doubt that this horse is a bit of a thinker, but Jamie Moore knows how to handle him as well, and although the nine-year-old has been keeping lesser company, his weight today reflects that fact and can pop in again. Dual winner Orpen Wide even had the speed to overcome a low draw when scoring on the Flat at Beverley on Tuesday, so will surely make his presence felt as well along with Tech Eagle who has been profitable to follow since coming over from Germany. He might just need this to sharpen him up though, having been off since April, while Hilltime was runner-up here on his last start over timber 11 months ago, and has just had a recent pipe-opener on the all-weather. Bound has met better company in the past but has been hard to place, and all in all, we like the look of Shaman.
Borora 7-2fav (11-7) Held up, ridden after 4th, some headway, weakened 2 out, 7th of 9, 15l behind Marrel (10-1) at Chepstow 2m hcp hdl 0-130 (3) gd in Apr.
Bound 12-1 (11-11) Tracked leaders, led, hit 5th, ridden when not fluent 3 out, soon headed and weakened, 7th of 12, 42l behind Guru (10-11) at Stratford 2m hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gs in May.
Tech Eagle (IRE) 4-1 (11-7) Mid-division, headway 5th, switched right approaching 2 out, led last, ran on well flat, won at Worcester 2m nov hdl (4) gf in Apr beating Sunley Shines (11-2) by 4l, 11 ran.
Albarino (IRE) 10-1 (11-0) Held up, hit 5th, headway 7th, weakened 9th, tailed off, 4th of 13, well behind Lord Henry (11-0) at Hereford 2m 3f beg chs (4) gf.
Hilltime (IRE) 20-1 (10-3) Tracked leaders, went 2nd 3 out, ridden next, led briefly last, kept on to chase winner flat, 2nd of 18, 1 1/2l behind Buena Vista (11-7) at Market Rasen 2m 1f hcp hdl 0-145 (B) gd in Jul.
Orpen Wide (IRE) 7-4fav (11-2) Held up, headway 3 out, soon ridden, chased leader approaching last, stayed on to lead flat, won at Cartmel 2m 1f 4yo nov hdl (4) gs in May beating William Tell (10-12) by 3/4l, 9 ran.
Smokey Mountain (IRE) 7-2 (11-2) Raced keenly, tracked leader, headway to challenge after 3 out, every chance next, one pace approaching last, 4th of 11, 12l behind Wiggy Smith (11-0) at Market Rasen 2m 1f nov hdl (4) gf.
Shaman 11-4 (11-7) Going easily, improved to lead before last, looked reluctant in front, kept going, won at Fontwell 2m 2f sll hdl (5) gf beating Flying Pass (10-10) by a hd, 9 ran.
