held up towards rear, headway halfway, soon mid-division, lost action and pulled up soon after 3 out
behind, ridden 3 out, soon weakened
behind, jumped slowly 3rd, fell 9th
tracked leaders, under pressure 3 out, soon outpaced, stayed on approaching last, went 2nd towards finish, never reached winner
led, headed 4th, remained prominent, led again 9th, mistake next, headed approaching last, faded and lost 2nd closing stages
held up in rear, jumped slowly 8th, mistake next, headway to chase leaders 2 out, never on terms
held up in touch, under pressure 4 out, jumoed slowly next, soon beaten
prominent, led 4th, headed 9th, remained prominent, weakening when blundered last
chased leaders, effort 2 out, led approaching last, ridden out
held up in touch, chased leaders 3 out, weakened after next
Nonrunner
With five C&D winners in opposition, this is quite competitive for the grade. High Oscar won by 14 lengths at Fontwell last month but Father Time looks as though he's catching up with Master D'Or and The Hardy Boy, while Chord returns from his summer break. She's Humble also need to improve on recent efforts so the vote goes to the lightly-raced FREE SPEECH, who hails from a yard in decent form and wouldn't need to improve much on last week's second at Folkestone to go close here. Montana Gold has ability but is a little hard to predict nowadays.
High Oscar 4-1 (11-5) Held up in rear, headway to go 4th at 12th, went 3rd before 3 out, led before 2 out, clear before last, kept on well, won at Fontwell 2m 6f cnd hcp chs (0-95) (5) sft in Nov beating Curragh Dancer (10-11) by 14l, 8 ran.
Master d'Or (FR) 20-1 (10-4) Not fluent in rear, struggling before 8th, behind and eased on long run to ommited 4 out, tailed off, 6th of 7, 39l behind Renard (11-12) at Exeter 2m 1f hcp chs 0-125 (3) gs in Nov.
Montana Gold (IRE) 9-2 (10-3) Led, mistake 2nd, headed 4th, led 6th, headed after 7th, hit 10th, mistake when struggling 14th, blundered next, tailed off, last of 7, well behind Definite Dawn (11-6) at Fontwell 3m 2f Conditional Handicap Chase (0-115) (4yo+) (4) gd in Sep.
She's Humble (IRE) 66-1 (10-9) Tracked leaders, ridden after 7th, well held 3 out, plugged on from next, 7th of 9, 18l behind Master Milan (11-5) at Plumpton 2m 2f hcp hdl 0-100 (5) gs in Nov.
Manmoon (FR) 9-1 (11-4) With leader, lost place 9th, behind from next, continued tailed off, 8th of 11, well behind French Ties (11-4) at Uttoxeter 2m 4f hcp 0-100 (5) gs in Nov.
Chord 7-1 (11-4) Held up in touch, chased winner 12th, ridden 4 out, mistake 2 out, lost 2nd last, no impression flat, 3rd of 6, 6l behind Henri Prends Garde (11-4) at Hereford 2m 5f hcp chs 0-95 (5) gf in Aug.
The Hardy Boy 4-1 (10-7) Led, soon clear, hit 3rd, reduced advantage next, headed before 10th, soon behind, tailed off, 3rd of 4, well behind Wood Yer (11-11) at Plumpton 2m 4f hcp chs 0-105 (4) gd in Oct.
Paddy The Yank (IRE) 15-2 (10-1) Led, narrowly headed after 7th, chased winner until ridden and outpaced before 3 out, rallied from last, almost snatched 3rd, 4th of 7, 27l behind Sablazo (10-3) at Fontwell 2m 2f nov hcp chs 0-100 (5) gs in Nov.
Ballyman (IRE) 13-2 (10-10) Chased leaders, blundered 13th, 4th approaching 5 out, weakened before 3 out, 4th of 8, 40l behind Ethiopia (11-3) at Chepstow 3m 2f hcp chs 0-95 (5) gd in Apr.
Cloonavery (IRE) 50-1 (11-2) Tracked leader until 3rd, mistake next, soon last, blundered and behind next, pulled up before last, in a race won by Milgen Bay (11-2) at Towcester 2m mdn chs (5) gd in Nov, 5 ran.
Free Speech 3-1 (11-2) Led, clear 11th, mistake next, ridden before 2 out, headed last, no extra flat, 2nd of 6, 3 1/2l behind Hunt Ball (10-0) at Folkestone 2m 5f nov hcp chs 0-95 (5) gf in Nov.
