led, mistake 3 out, hard ridden and strongly challenged when fell last
held up in touch, lost place 10th, left in remote 3rd at last, stayed on to go 2nd flat, no chance with winner
held up in touch, mistake 1st, not fluent 10th, headway 5 out, soon chasing leaders, staying on under pressure when sprawled on landing and unseated rider last
tracked leaders, under pressure 9th, mistake 11th, weakened 5 out, left in remote 2nd at last, weakened flat
tracked leader, always travelling well, ridden to challenge when left in lead last, soon well clear
keen hold, held up towards rear, under pressure halfway, effort when fell 12th
SPELLCHECKER is the call with Nodanawink and Baltic Pathfinder likely to duel for the forecast slot. The selection is rated quite some way clear of his rivals on official figures and while that is no guarantee of success in itself, were he able to repeat the form of his second in a Catterick event, he would prove a very tough nut to crack. Nodanawink ran respectably enough in a fast ground bumper at Worcester last year. One would imagine that that was always going to be a finding out exercise given that the option of hurdling has been dismissed. Sue Smith's horses are running well so Baltic Pathfinder has to enter calculations. Neptune Equester has been big odds on two starts. His family have a distinct jumping pedigree as the dam was a winner of point-to-point races. This race is not certain to knock any attention off Cheltenham's features this afternoon but it would be a major headline grabber were Spellchecker unable to post victory.
Baltic Pathfinder (IRE) 11-4 (10-11) Led, headed 6th, tracked leader, ridden after 5 out, lost place next, soon weakened, left 4th last, 4th of 6, 18l behind Blacks Bridge (11-3) at Newcastle 2m nov hcp chs 0-115 (4) hvy in Jan.
Ellandshe (IRE) 25-1 (9-9) Chased leader, until 3 out, weakened soon after, 6th of 8, 18l behind Troodos Jet (10-7) at Sedgefield 2m hcp chs 0-90 (5) sft.
Neptune Equester 50-1 (11-0) Mid-division, weakened 8th, rallied and stayed on approaching last, where mistake, went 4th flat, 4th of 11, 22l behind Gringo (11-0) at Sedgefield 2m beg chase (4) sft.
Nodanawink 9-1 (11-3) Tracked leader, ridden 5f out, weakened 3f out, 4th of 11, 27l behind Danimix (10-7) at Worcester 2m NH flat (6) gf in Jun.
Spellchecker (IRE) 11-1 (10-12) Chased leader, lost place approaching 5th, tailed off and pulled up soon after, in a race won by Ockey De Neulliac (10-12) at Catterick 2m nov chs 0-115 (4) gs in Feb, 9 ran.
Mistic Academy (IRE) 66-1 (11-9) Held up towards rear, headway to chase leaders approaching 4th, lost place from next, last of 9, well behind Cat Six (9-11) at Catterick 2m mrs nov hcp hdl (0-95) (5) gs.
