held up in touch, lost place 6th, headway 9th, went 2nd 3 out, led after next, edged left after last, soon ridden, held on under pressure flat
held up behind, headway and in touch 7th, tracked leader next to 3 out, ridden and chance last, one pace flat
held up in touch, outpaced 4 out, soon weakened, tailed off when pulled up before last
in rear, jumped right from 3rd, struggling 6th, soon lost touch, tailed off
led to before 7th, hit next, soon lost place, outpaced 9th, no impression from next, weakened 2 out
in touch, tracked leader 2nd, led before 7th, headed after 2 out, ridden and every chance last, drifted right and one pace flat, lost 2nd post
with leader until mistake and reminder 2nd, in touch, blundered 8th, 5th and outpaced when hit 2 out, soon ridden, stayed on well under pressure flat to go 2nd post
held up towards rear, effort to chase leaders 4 out, soon ridden and outpaced, no impression from 2 out
DUKE OF MALFI gets the vote here ahead of Toulouse Express and Raysrock. Lucinda Russell's gelding is one of two horses in the race chasing a hat-trick this afternoon and a 6lb rise in the weights for his latest win at Ayr may underestimate him. He handles this ground well and with Tom Scudamore an able deputy for Peter Buchanan a bold bid is expected. The drop in trip may suit Native Coll, whilst it looks against Paddys Unyoke, so a bigger threat should be Toulouse Express. He has won his last two in game fashion and his jockey knows him well, although he does have lots to find with the selection when behind him at Hexham in November. Primrose Time has been unfortunate to bump into Bedlam Boy the last twice, whilst Cloudmor needs a market check on this return from 826 days on the sidelines. Justtheoneforyou should appreciate the drop in trip and Graham Lee is an interesting jockey booking, however the chief danger should be Raysrock. He won well over hurdles at Ayr recently and with the ground no problem he should run well if jumping proficiently. An open handicap, but preference is for Duke Of Malfi.
Raysrock (IRE) 8-1 (11-12) Led to 5th, kept on under pressure approaching and not fluent last, soon led, driven out, won at Ayr 2m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gd in Feb beating Baaher (11-3) by 1 1/2l, 9 ran.
Justtheoneforyou 7-1 (11-11) Tracked leaders in 3rd, jumped slowly 2nd, blundered 9th, soon lost place, tailed off when pulled up before 4 out, in a race won by Fiftyfive Degrees (11-9) at Ayr 2m 4f hcp ch 0-110 (4) gd in Feb, 7 ran.
Cloudmor (IRE) 9-4fav (12-1) Held up, blundered 4th, reminders and struggling 8th, pulled up before 10th, in a race won by Pillaging Pict (10-6) at Newcastle 2m 4f hcp chs 0-115 (4) gs in Dec '07, 6 ran.
Primrose Time 8-1 (9-13) Led to 1st, remained with winner until blundered 3 out, one pace, 2nd of 5, 6l behind Bedlam Boy (11-5) at Ayr 2m nov chs (3) sft in Dec.
Toulouse Express (IRE) 8-1 (10-1) Made all, ridden last, stayed on under pressure flat, just held on, won at Market Rasen 2m 6f hcp chs 0-115 (4) sft in Jan beating Bobby Gee (11-5) by nk, 10 ran.
Duke of Malfi 3-1 (10-11) Led early, chased leader, led approaching 4 out, clear from 2 out, won at Ayr 2m hcp chs 0-105 (4) sft in Dec beating Original Fly (11-7) by 5l, 6 ran.
Paddys Unyoke (IRE) 20-1 (11-6) Tracked leaders, blundered 3 out, soon weakened, 6th of 14, 21l behind Seeking Power (11-0) at Kelso 3m 1f hcp chs 0-95 (5) sft in Feb.
Native Coll 14-1 (10-3) Prominent, led 5th until after next, stumbled 7th, led 10th until 11th, led 12th until 4 out, weakened approaching last, 5th of 14, 23l behind Categorical (11-11) at Newcastle 2m 4f hcp chs 0-100 (4) hvy in Feb.
