mid-division, headway before 8th, challenged 3 out, soon ridden, led last, stayed on well
chased leaders, ridden after 3 out, weakened before next
led, jumped right 5th, ridden after 8th, headed 3 out, weakened well before next
held up towards rear, headway after 8th, short of room after 3 out, weakened before next
held up towards rear, headway approaching 9th, weakened approaching 2 out
tracked leaders, went 2nd after 7th, not fluent 9th, led 3 out, ridden before next, not fluent and headed last, held towards finish
in rear, struggling from 7th, mistake next, tailed off after 3 out
tracked leader, hit 6th, mistake next, weakened well before 2 out
A few of these look quite closely matched. Willoughby Hedge won over the trip at Wetherby in May but that means he carries a penalty. Keltic Rhythm keeps finding one too good but Uttoxeter conqueror Carlton Jack has won again since and Neil King's charge is preferred to Kyles Faith, who made no impression when dropped into a seller at Stratford last time. PATSYS CASTLE got outpaced over 2m4f at Huntingdon on his hurdling debut but is sure to improve over this trip having already scored between the flags. He looks the one to beat, though Golden Calf is also a winning pointer with a bit of scope.
Willoughby Hedge 6-4 (10-13) Tracked leaders, went 2nd before 3 out, led after 2 out, shaken up to draw clear before last, eased near finish, won at Wetherby 3m 1f nh nov hdl (4) gs in May beating Loose Preformer (11-5) by 27l, 6 ran.
Golden Calf (IRE) 7-1 (11-0) Behind, pushed along over 5f out, some late headway, never on terms, 5th of 8, 25l behind Ocean Waves (11-0) at Carlisle 2m 1f NH flat (6) gd in Oct.
Grilyne (FR) 14-1 (11-10) Led 8f, struggling 5f out, 7th of 14, 35l behind Sidbury Hill (11-3) at Worcester 2m mdn nat hunt flat (6) sft in Oct.
Keltic Rhythm (IRE) 7-1 (10-11) Led, ridden after 3 out, soon pressed, kept on under pressure until headed and no extra final 50 yarads, 2nd of 15, 2l behind Carlton Jack (10-11) at Uttoxeter 2m 4f 4yo mdn stks (5) gd in Oct.
Kyles Faith (IRE) 15-2 (10-12) Held up in 3rd, driven and lost place after 2 out, weakened before last, 5th of 6, 16l behind Imperial Stargazer (10-12) at Stratford 2m sell hdl (5) sft in Oct.
Patsys Castle (IRE) 33-1 (10-12) Chased leader until 2nd, reminder after 5th, mistake and outpaced next, kept plugging away and closed when not fluent 3 out, pressing for 3rd flat, no impression on leading pair, stayed on same pace, 4th of 12, 10l behind Oscar Fortune (10-12) at Huntingdon 2m 4f nh nov hdl (4) sft in Oct.
Special Vintage 16-1 (10-12) Raced keenly, not fluent 1st, disputed 2nd until wandered badly approaching 6th, under pressure next, no chance with front pair when hit 3 out, tailed off, 3rd of 6, well behind Mush Mir (10-11) at Bangor 2m 4f nh nov hdl (4) gd in Sep '11.
Stickers 40-1 (11-0) Held up, mistake 5th, well beaten 7th, tailed off when pulled up before next, in a race won by Premier Portrait (11-0) at Worcester 2m 4f mdn hdl (5) sft in Oct, 10 ran.
