held up in rear, good headway on inside approaching 2 out, chased leaders before last, took narrow lead flat, headed towards finish, lost 2nd final strides
chased leader until after 3 out, ridden and weakened before next
in touch, ridden approaching 2 out, no response
mid-division, ridden and beaten when hit last 2
held up in rear, short lived effort approaching 2 out
held up towards rear, headway approaching 2 out, chased leaders before last, sustained run flat, driven ahead near finish
took keen hold early, soon in touch, ridden and weakened approaching 2 out
always towards rear, ridden along 5th, beaten after 3 out, well behind when hit last 2
chased leaders, weakened when hit 2 out, well beaten when hit last
made most until narrowly headed 2 out, stayed challenging and every chance, rallied to lead briefly towards finish, caught final strides
chased leaders, hit 5th, went 2nd after 3 out, driven to take narrow lead 2 out, headed flat, no extra
held up towards rear, stayed on from 2 out, shaken up flat, never reached challenging position
A cracking contest and one where we'll take BLUE SHARK to defy a massive layoff and keep Nicky Henderson's tremendous run of form going. Meanwhile Wingman is respected and Sunnyhill Boy can also go very well. The selection has been off the track for almost three years but his trainer is just about the master of bringing them back after problems and having them right to win first time. Cut in the ground is very much a plus for him, this trip on a stiff track is probably ideal, and if you were to take his defeat of Turko literally when we last saw him win the 2005 Finale Hurdle at Chepstow then he would look very well handicapped here. Wingman loves this sort of ground and has a course-and-distance win to his name. He may not have the class of the selection if he is at his best, but he represents a yard in flying form and that does well in big hurdle races here so dismiss him at your peril. Sunnyhill Boy is certainly open to improvement after just five starts to date. Already a dual winner this season, cut suits him well and his mark looks fair based on his latest Cheltenham win so he should be bang there. Tchico Polos has very similar credentials with just four runs so far, and he looked a potential world beater when hacking up last time. This Paul Nicholls inmate is hugely respected and can go very close. Stablemate Five Dream looks likely to be competitive with his good claimer up, while Spear Thistle is in search of a quickfire hat-trick and a win would be no major shock with Charlie Mann having his runners fully tuned.
Five Dream (FR) 7-2 (11-3) Held up, tracking leaders, chased leader from 2nd, led 2 out, ridden and headed approaching last, one pace, 4th of 12, 7l behind Crack Away Jack (11-7) at Chepstow 2m hcp hdl (2) gd in Oct.
Blue Shark (FR) 7-1 (11-0) In touch, headway 4th, led after 3 out, quickened clear 2 out, kept on, won at Chepstow 2m nov hdl Grd 1 (A) gs in Dec '05 beating Turko (11-0) by 8l, 15 ran.
Wingman (IRE) 28-1 (10-6) Chased leader to 3rd, remained prominent, outpaced from 3 out, stayed on again last, no danger, 6th of 12, 14l behind Numide (10-3) at Cheltenham 2m hcp hdl Grd 3 (1) sft in Nov.
King's Revenge 16-1 (10-10) Always prominent, led soon after 2 out, ridden and headed approaching last, stayed on same pace, 3rd of 12, 5l behind Numide (10-3) at Cheltenham 2m hcp hdl Grd 3 (1) sft in Nov.
European Dream (IRE) 11-2 (11-4) Held up, headway approaching 3 out, led, stayed on well to lead flat, won at Wetherby 2m hcp hdl 0-130 (3) gs in Nov beating Freeloader (11-7) by 1 1/2l, 11 ran.
Sunnyhillboy (IRE) 14-1 (11-7) Mid-division, headway approaching 3 out, led approaching last, ran on strongly, won at Cheltenham 2m nov hcp hdl 0-125 (3) sft in Nov beating Maneki Neko (10-10) by 4l, 19 ran.
Tchico Polos (FR) 5-4 (11-4) Made all, jumped right 1st and 2nd, went clear approaching 3rd, in command from approaching 2 out, easily, won at Wincanton 2m nh nov hdl (3) sft in Nov beating Ravello Bay (10-5) by 21l, 5 ran.
Portavadie 25-1 (11-12) Chased leaders until lost place after 3 out, stayed on again approaching last, 6th of 14, 13l behind Take The Breeze (11-4) at Sandown 2m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) sft in Nov.
Approved Force (USA) 9-2 (11-9) Held up towards rear, headway after 5th, ridden approaching 2 out, stayed on same pace last, 4th of 10, 8l behind Mujamead (10-12) at Leicester 2m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gd in Nov.
Spear Thistle 3-1 (11-9) Led to 5th, remained prominent, led approaching 3 out, drew clear approaching 2 out, stayed on well, won at Uttoxeter 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gs in Nov beating Predictive (11-3) by 6l, 12 ran.
Hernando Royal 5-1 (11-5) Tracked leaders, ridden approaching 3 out, kept on same pace from 2 out, 4th of 19, 7l behind Sunnyhillboy (11-7) at Cheltenham 2m nov hcp hdl 0-125 (3) sft in Nov.
Folk Tune (IRE) 12-1 (10-0) Raced wide, held up in rear, good headway after 3 out, chased leaders approaching 2 out, kept on flat, never nearer, 4th of 14, 3 1/2l behind Art Professor (10-10) at Ascot 2m hcp hdl 0-140 (2) gd in Nov.
