chased leaders, mistake 5th, lost touch with front pair well before 2 out
chased leader, challenging when not fluent 2 out, soon led, driven flat, headed towards finish
held up in last, took keen hold, not fluent 3rd, ridden after 3 out, lost touch with leaders well before 2 out
raced freely, led, clear after 3rd until mistake 3 out, mistake 2 out, soon headed, not fluent last, switched left and rallied flat, led again towards finish
There may only be four runners in this but it's far from straightforward. McCabe Creek may be in need of a confidence-booster after falling on his hurdling debut at Southwell but was making ground at the time. Urubu D'Irlande beat the smart Oscar Rock in a bumper at Taunton a couple of years ago but has only managed one run since while Assam Black was well beaten in the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham in March. GAITWAY beat Tea For Two on his debut at Newbury in March and the runner-up beat a 135-rated novice on his hurdling debut at Kempton. Nicky Henderson's charge could be a nice prospect over timber so gets the nod.
Assam Black (IRE) 66-1 (11-5) Mid-division on outside, outpaced over 3f out, soon ridden, weakened 2f out, 19th of 22, 24l behind Silver Concorde (11-5) at Cheltenham 2m G1 NH flat (1) gd in Mar.
Gaitway 7-2 (10-9) Held up in mid-division, smooth headway on inside to 2nd 4f out, led approaching final furlong, stayed on, ridden out, won at Newbury 2m NH flat (2) gs in Mar beating Tea For Two (10-13) by 1l, 18 ran.
McCabe Creek (IRE) 7-2 (10-12) Towards rear, mistake 2nd, plugging on in modest 7th when fell 2 out, in a race won by Kalane (10-5) at Southwell 2m nov hdl (4) gd in Oct, 14 ran.
Urubu D'irlande (FR) 2-1fav (11-6) Led, ridden clear 2f out, headed inside final furlong, stayed on, 2nd of 8, 1l behind Yanworth (10-12) at Wincanton 2m NH flat (6) gs in May.
