prominent, left 2nd 8th, every chance 2 out, not fluent last, soon beaten, stayed on
took keen hold in last, mistakes 3rd and 5th, stumbled 7th, headway 9th, outpaced after 3 out, stayed on from next, pressed for held 2nd flat
led until 4th, left in lead 8th, mistake 3 out, soon headed, weakened approaching last
tracked leaders, led after 3 out, driven out
took keen hold, sometimes jumped right, soon in touch, headway to lead 4th, hanging right after 7th, ran out next
held up, pushed along after 8th, outpaced next, mistake and well held from 3 out
Nigel Twiston-Davies has his string in fine fettle at present so What An Oscar has to be respected on his hurdling debut but a better bet looks to be the Nicky Richards-trained DOWD'S DESTINY, who overcame a long absence when landing a novices' hurdle at Worcester at the beginning of the month and he can follow up that success here. Jennie Candlish's Downward Spiral has struggled under a penalty for his Towcester success in two starts since then and is likely to do so again and a bigger threat is likely to come from George Moore's Majestic Mayhem, who completed a hat-trick when successful at Hexham in June before struggling in a handicap at Southwell last month. Peter Bowen's North Island has been running well over fences but got no further than the first flight before falling back over hurdles at Worcester last month and he now looks best watched in a race taken to go to Dowd's Destiny.
Majestic Mayhem (IRE) 7-2 (11-3) Mostly chased leader, not fluent 4th, lost 2nd 7th, weakened under pressure after 3 out, tailed off, 7th of 9, 47l behind To Arms (11-2) at Southwell 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-130 (3) gf in Jul.
Dowd's Destiny (IRE) 10-1 (10-12) Held up towards rear, headway 3 out, went 2nd approaching next, led last, ridden and kept on well towards finish, won at Market Rasen 2m 5f nh nov hdl (4) gd beating Cailin Na Ri (10-12) by 2 1/4l, 9 ran.
Downward Spiral (IRE) 4-1 (11-5) Led, ridden after 9th, hung right and headed when not fluent last, hung right flat, no extra, 3rd of 5, 3 1/2l behind Marblehead (10-9) at Worcester 3m nh nov hdl (4) gd in Jul.
North Island (IRE) 5-6fav (10-12) Fell 1st, in a race won by Marblehead (10-9) at Worcester 3m nh nov hdl (4) gd in Jul, 5 ran.
The Hairy Mutt (IRE) 9-1 (10-5) Held up in rear, hanging right after 8th, effort next, no impression approaching 3 out, 8 lenghts 5th last, soon hung violently right and no danger, 6th of 10, 21l behind Sir Ronan (10-12) at Worcester 3m nh nov hdl (4) gd.
What An Oscar (IRE) 25-1 (10-9) Pressed leader until over 3f out, weakened over 2f out, 8th of 13, 26l behind Megastar (11-0) at Sandown 2m NH flat (5) gd in Nov.
