pressed leader, led after 2nd, jumped slowly 4th, headed 2 out, beaten last, weakened into 4th towards finish
tracked leaders, not fluent 1st, went 2nd 3rd, not fluent 6th, led 2 out, driven clear from last
held up, headway 4th, one pace in 4th when blundered 2 out, went 3rd towards finish
led until after 2nd, hit 8th and lost place, weakened 4 out, tailed off
chased leaders, ridden after 4 out, went 2nd soon after last, stayed on same pace, no impression on winner
held up, headway 4th, not fluent next, mistake 8th, not fluent and lost place 4 out, soon weakened
LAST SHOT should get a tow into the race from front-runners Regal D'Estruval and Bin End and, having run well for a long way in a more competitive affair at Doncaster last week, can defy top weight. Sew On Target will also be prominent having been ridden with more restraint over a longer trip at Cheltenham last Saturday. He is hard to win with but can't be ruled out and looks a better bet than either Roger Beantown or Speedy Bruere. Un Anjou was beaten less than a length behind the Venetia Williams-trained Massena at Leicester last time but 14lb higher than when winning at Warwick in December.
Last Shot (FR) 8-1 (10-3) With leaders, mistake 6 out, led before 4 out, headed 3 out, ridden before 2 out, one pace, 3rd of 8, 14l behind Simply Ned (10-11) at Doncaster 2m hcp chs (2) gs in Jan.
Sew On Target (IRE) 14-1 (10-0) Tracked leaders, effort 2 out, one pace before last, ridden and weakened flat, 4th of 10, 19l behind Wishfull Thinking (11-12) at Cheltenham 2m 5f hcp chs G3 (1) hvy in Jan.
Roger Beantown (IRE) 16-1 (10-9) Keen hold in touch, mistake 8th, under pressure 10th, weakened 5 out, mistake next, soon beaten, 6th of 7, well behind Loose Chips (11-3) at Kempton 2m 4f (3) sft in Dec.
Regal D'estruval (FR) 7-1 (11-12) Led until blundered badly and headed 5th, lost place and never going after, struggling in rear 7th, tailed off, 8th of 9, 45l behind Riskier (11-4) at Sedgefield 2m 4f hcp chs 0-120 (4) gd in May.
Speedy Bruere (FR) 16-1 (11-4) Tracked leaders on inside, pushed along before 7th, soon ridden and lost place, well beaten 3 out, 5th of 7, 33l behind Firth Of The Clyde (11-10) at Market Rasen 2m 2f hcp chs 0-135 (3) hvy in Jan.
Un Anjou (FR) 4-1 (11-12) Mid-division, headway on inside 8th, chased winner 4 oiut, led 2 out, headed last, led again flat, hard ridden and edged left, headed towards finish, 2nd of 8, 3/4l behind Massena (11-10) at Leicester 2m nov hcp chs 0-115 (4) sft in Jan.
Bin End 14-1 (11-0) Led until 5th, stayed handy, ridden after 8th, every chance 2 out, beaten before last, one pace, 2nd of 4, 7l behind Ahyaknowyerself (11-0) at Leicester 2m nov chs (3) sft in Jan.
