held up in rear, struggling from 5th, tailed off 3 out
tracked leader, led approaching 2 out, headed approaching last, no extra
held up in touch, chased leaders 5th, weakened approaching last
held up, weakened from 6th, soon tailed off
held up towards rear, weakened approaching 2 out
tracked leaders, ridden and not fluent 2 out, one pace
led, ridden and headed approaching 2 out, soon weakened
held up mid-division, led approaching last, stayed on well
in rear, hit 1st, reminders 7th, ridden after 3 out, tailed off, pulled up before next
Plenty of question marks here and it is not with much confidence that we side with TIDE SLIDER ahead of Railway Park, Hard And Fast and Custom Design. The selection comes here on the back of a 350 day absence but that may not be a bad thing. His trainer has his horses in good form at the moment and the drop in grade should suit this 14-race maiden. AP McCoy looks an interesting jockey booking for Railway Park; this is his first ride for the yard in recent seasons and the gelding looks a player as he drops in class. Fenners and Elliwan need watching in the market for a shrewd northern outfit despite the poor record of the yard at the track. Emotive has plenty to find on the ratings, so of more interest may be Hard And Fast. The yard have a sterling record in races of this ilk and despite the patchy record of this gelding, he commands plenty of respect. He won a race of similar quality at Huntingdon in August and a repeat of that run would see him go close. Bottom-weight Hazy Oaks looks the most interesting of the remainder however she has a poor run at Newcastle to forget and a safer proposition may be Tide Slider who is preferred.
Elliwan 10-1 (9-3) Slowly into stride, towards rear, pushed along over 6f out, never dangerous, 13th of 16, 21l behind Forrest Flyer (9-1) at Newcastle 1m 4f hcp 0-60 (6) sft in May (flat).
Tide Slider 11-8fav (11-1) Prominent, hit 5th, driven when mistake last, soon weakened, 8th of 10, well behind Heavenly Chorus (11-3) at Catterick 2m 3f con hcp hdl 0-110 3yo+ (4) gd in Dec.
Railway Park (IRE) 4-1 (10-12) Took keen hold, tracked leader, led approaching 3rd, pushed along and headed 3 out, weakened and hit 2 out, 3rd of 4, 47l behind Ifandbutwhy (10-12) at Wetherby 2m 4f nov hdl (4) gd in Oct.
Fenners (USA) 33-1 (11-0) Held up towards rear, weakened after 4 out, 14th of 16, 37l behind King In Waiting (11-0) at Newcastle 2m mdn hdl (5) gd in Oct.
Emotive 13-2 (10-10) Held up, weakened approaching 2 out, last of 9, 27l behind Mystified (11-0) at Kelso 2m 6f hcp hdl 0-90 (4) gd in Oct.
Hard And Fast (IRE) 5-2fav (11-12) In touch, never really travelling, ridden and struggling before 9th, soon tailed off and pulled up before 3 out, in a race won by Tayman (11-11) at Plumpton 2m 5f hcp hdl 0-105 (4) gf in Sep, 8 ran.
Custom Design 22-1 (11-2) Led to 2nd, blundered and lost place next, weakened 4f out, 10th of 13, well behind Well Disguised (10-2) at Newcastle 2m hcp hdl 0-100 (4) sft in Dec.
Hareem (IRE) 8-1 (11-5) Reluctant to line up, ridden to gain prominent position, ridden 3 out, weakened approaching 2 out, 5th of 13, 27l behind Roisin's Prince (10-12) at Towcester 2m sell hdl (5) gs.
Hazy Oaks 14-1 (11-7) Prominent to 6th, weakened, pulled up before 3 out, in a race won by Solway Sunset (11-1) at Newcastle 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-100 (4) gf in Mar, 16 ran.
