Silver Call gets the nod here ahead of Dear Deal, Proper Squire and Diamond Monroe. The Paul Nicholls-trained selection ran the Cheltenham-bound Fork Lightning to half-a-length at Wincanton last time and a repeat of that form will make him hard to beat here. Dear Deal sets the benchmark for the form, having performed consistently this season, although conceding weight to the field will not be easy. Proper Squire has been waiting for better going so might just need this returning run but, if fully tuned, should be competitive. Diamond Monroe has fair hurdling form and, from a top stable, has to be respected. Isotop is certainly up to winning a race of this nature based on his close third at Ludlow last time but the others need to improve a little bit if they are to feature in this contest. Once again, then, the road leads us back to Silver Call, who can land this race.
